


Dark Chao Adventures Halloween 2010: Sinister Serials of the Dark

by DJay32



Series: Dark Chao Adventures (Specials) [1]
Category: Nightmare House (Source Engine Modification), Sonic the Hedgehog (Video Games)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-09-02
Updated: 2015-09-02
Packaged: 2018-04-18 16:50:04
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 44,477
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4713272
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DJay32/pseuds/DJay32
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Note that the following script takes place in Season 7, between Episodes 73 and 74.</p><p>It's Halloween on the Green Journey, and in today's feature presentation, the gang's next destination is the forest of Sancheria, where their biggest menace might be lurking nearby or it might even be surrounding them at all times! Enjoy also the intermission stylings of the Poker Gang's attempts to infiltrate an abandoned house on the side of the road.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Dark Chao Adventures Halloween 2010: Sinister Serials of the Dark

**Author's Note:**

> Decided to upload this before a lot of the rest of DCA simply because this is a better idea of the quality of the later series.
> 
> This is one of those scripts that probably predicted a lot of the stuff I'd write when I was older, as well as being one of those scripts where I actually put a decent amount of effort into. I made maps for this thing. The feature presentation is the closest I got, up to that point, to writing something original that I was actually proud of.
> 
> Nowadays, while I would have to be out of my mind to consider it "very good," I'm still fond of good ol' DCAHall3, and I hope anyone who takes the time to read it finds it.. enjoyable.
> 
> One last note: If you go to the url http://www.doolinx.com/dca/sample.html you can find, in multiple parts, my fifteen-year-old self reading this entire thing out loud.

DISCLAIMER: All characters, events, and locations within this story are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual stuff is, in most cases, entirely unintentional. Mostly.  
Except "Bound to a Stream of Consciousness." That's based on a true story.

  
Welcome, children of the night,  
For I have a story for you.  
Have you ever wondered what many a fright  
Could be experienced by a demented chao, too?

First, we shall listen as our main protagonist  
Becomes a victim of the unbelievers.  
Listen to his lost tale of strangers in the mist,  
And become addicted to the frightful fevers.

Next in our series of fright is the feature presentation.  
Lost in the forest of things beyond their dreams,  
The heroes of the dark become severed, and whatever destination  
For which they were headed is now long gone.. or so it seems.

The final tale is told within the main one...  
A tale of three non-A-Life-forms  
Finding a deserted house under the night sun  
Only to find their own fear transforms.

Hark! For the first tale has more to it than appears.  
When you have finished reading it and gotten over any fears...  
You may realize it ends strangely. Don't start making theories;  
By Rocktober's end, you will have no more queries.

Now, of the feature-length second tale, it is best you take note  
Of many hidden things of which I have wrote.  
Read it carefully, check each acre twice, analyze all that you can,  
And ponder on which of the typos I had intended.MAN

The third tale is fairly straightforward,  
Even if the concept of an extra story (in DCAHall) had not previously been heard.  
Though the tale is short and the dangers few, the legacy has barely been rode--  
The story will continue in the main series' next episode.

Finally, remember all the stories take place in Season Seven.  
Hopefully, at least one of the stories will leave you praying to your Heaven.  
So watch out for the Operator, keep your eyes on the trees,  
Grin and bare my tales, and remember.. all horrors come in threes.

It's time for Halloween.  
A rather... DARK Halloween.

  
**Dark Chao Adventures Halloween 2010: Sinister Serials of the Dark**

 

**Tale One: The Tale of the Second Chaos Drive (Urban Legends)**

The following is the transcript of a recording taken in the Dark Hospital Mental Institution,  
The Recording of Patient 3024 Interview (Shadow Ryder).

[The tape begins here.]

["Are you ready to begin the interview, Shadow?"]  
Yeah.  
["What happened? Why were you sent to this hospital?"]  
Well, y'see, I never told anybody how I got the second chaos drive in my travels.  
["And the tale of how you got it made people deem you 'insane?'"]  
Very.  
["Very well. Go ahead."]

This was back when I was doing the Green Journey.....  
Our party at the time consisted of Shade and his future self, Dark, Red, and myself.  
We had just got through overthrowing Doctor Eggman, who had taken over future Europe.  
Heh, come to think of it, we thought THAT adventure was scary at the time...

[Shadow laughs hysterically; lasts about a minute]

Well, we were on the highway... y'know, that highway that Shade traversed after escaping Aperture Science?  
It was a really foggy day... and it was around five o clock by then, so the sky was awfully grey.  
When I say it was foggy, I MEAN it was foggy. Like... "The Mist" kinda foggy. You couldn't see two feet in front of you.  
Granted, two feet is, like, miles for us chao, but I digress.

Our car had broken down, and we knew a Chaos Drive was somewhere on the other side of the highway. Or something.  
The Veteran's Committee preferred not to tell us where we were going.  
Oh, and we woke up in a small town in America somewhere at around 10 AM. We were given nothing more than a car.  
I tell ya, you think car trips are boring around HERE? You've never been out in the country. THAT country.  
Things are so dull out there.. not a tree nor creature in sight for MILES. Just grey ground, grey sky, and the road.

Anyway, we were walkin' along for a bit, and Shade was in some heated argument with Red...  
Huh? Oh, it was just something about... like, pie, or something. I dunno. I was too focused on the road ahead.  
You see, I was looking ahead to see if I could see any obstacles or signs or whatnot.  
After a bit of walking, I saw this man... standing in the distance.

He seemed bald, and wore a fancy black business suit with a white undershirt and black tie.  
He was also pretty tall. I mean, being such small creatures, anything that's over a foot is tall for us.  
But, I mean.. this guy looked a little taller than most humans we'd seen.  
He.. he was also pretty damn thin. Like.. more than we're used to.

What's more, he was just.. standing there. In the distance. Looking at us.  
I told the others to stop arguing for a second and called for the dude.  
"HEY! Buddy! You!" I shouted it just like that.  
But... but the man... he was still just standing there. He didn't even glance.

So, I did what any normal person would do; I kept on walkin', planning on talking to him as we pass by.  
After all, maybe he just didn't hear me.  
So we walked.  
And we walked.  
And we walked.  
And we walked some more.  
["Shadow, okay, okay, I get it."]  
No. No, you don't. You probably think we walked for a bit, but NO! We... we walked for an HOUR!  
[Shadow starts giggling maniacally]  
An HOUR!!! We TIMED it!  
[Shadow takes a deep breath]  
.......

  
Anyway... after an hour of walking, I thought we probably passed the guy, so I looked behind us. Nothing.  
["Well, after an hour of walking, you'd have passed him a long time ago."]  
Yeah, you'd THINK that, wouldn't you? Hell, I did.  
So I turned back around and got ready to walk some more.  
Then I stopped.

I stopped the others, too.  
"Hey, guys? Isn't.. isn't that the same guy, up there in front of us?" I said. 'Cause the.. what happened was...  
The man was STILL in front of us, STILL the same distance, and STILL just STANDING THERE!  
The future Shade said something along the lines of "Hey, ugly!" and threw a rock through the fog.

After that, we all ducked, 'cause we just knew this guy was gonna get mad.  
Red peeked up for a second and said, "Uh... guys?"  
We looked, and... he was gone.  
He had vanished completely. No trace.

["I see... you can go now; I think I--"]  
Ho-ho-hold ON there, doc. I'm not finished with my recollection. It doesn't just end there, you know.  
["Oh, I see. Very well. Continue, Shadow."]  
Thanks.

You see, after he disappeared, the present Shade said it was just the highway playing tricks on us.  
After reading the transcript of what went on when Shade was traversing it, I'm not surprised.  
Anyway, we resumed walking for a bit. We talked a bit about how weird that occurance was.  
I mean, it WAS weird. Freaky. But it'd only get freakier.

Anyway, after a bit more walking, we encountered a building. A small shack. Middle of nowhere, small shack.  
Being as tired as we were from the same ol' scenery, we entered it.  
Inside was this.. this guy.... this weird, old man. He was doing something by a fireplace when we entered.  
I'm not entirely certain what he was doing, but I.. I think he was burning books.  
Exactly why he would be burning books in a shack in the middle of nowhere is beyond me, but I digress.

As we stepped across the threshold, he turned and screamed.  
["Did he scream anything coherent, or was it just a scream?"]  
Now that you mention it... I think it was more of a... hmm... I think he shouted "Operator." I think.  
["'Operator?'"]  
Yeah, 'Operator.'

He then stopped and said, "Oh, you're only chao... what are you doing out here on the highway? It's much too dangerous."  
I explained how we were looking for the chaos drive, and he looked.. he looked sad.  
Like he felt sorry for us.  
..he...... he felt sorry for us.

"This highway, you really shouldn't be here. It's not safe. Haven't you heard of the sl..." then he quickly shut up.  
He ran to the door and looked outside. He then shut the door, turned to us, and said, almost in a whisper,  
"Haven't you heard the rumors? Of.. of HIM?" Of course, we hadn't, so we shrugged. He continued.  
"They say he only comes when cameras are around. They also say he's only visible when he wants to be."

At this point, the future Shade asked, "What the hell are you talking about?"  
The man sighed, walked over to a shelf by a fireplace, grabbed an old, dusty book, and sat down in an armchair.  
"Gather around. I may as well tell you.. so you might be prepared."  
We approached him, and he began.

"There is a man.. no, not a man. There is.. a...... THING. A thing that looks like a man.  
This thing is some kind of monster man, ten feet tall.. with a suit and tie to match.  
Well, okay, so some stories place him at ten feet. Others place him at seven, or eight... or even fifteen.  
What more, he is awfully slim. You could say he is a very slender man."  
At this point, I was beginning to get paranoid.

He continued, "This man.. he was first really reported back in June 10th, 2009. Photographic evidence, and all.  
Black-and-white photographs, mind you.. but still. Evidence.  
The first photograph was of people being.. escorted away from a building by a tall man.  
The description of the photograph was: 'we didn't want to go, we didn't want to kill them, but its persistent silence and outstretched arms horrified and comforted us at the same time...'"  
Gotta admit, I got goosebumps by this point.  
["Mmm, I can imagine. Continue."]

He went on, "The second photograph was of children playing in a playground. A watermark stamped it with 'City of Stirling Libraries Local Studies Collection.' Normal, right? Yeah, but in the background was a tall man in the shadows.  
And his arms....... were.. were.... t..tent..acles.."  
You could tell this dude was shaken. He was blankly staring at the page, trying to find the strength to continue.

But he found that strength. "Al..although the first report was in 2009, the photographs of him go back quite a while.  
There's a rumor that the cavemen painted pictures of him on the walls, but... I don't buy that. Load of crock, that is.  
However, there are many, many, MANY reports of him since June of '09. The reports went up exponentially.  
Tales of missing persons, stalkers on the street, and.. and... trees."  
["'Trees?'"]  
Yeah, he said 'trees.'

I questioned him on this, and he just closed his eyes and clenched his fist.  
["Well, generally, trees in psychology and symbolism refer to new life, or just life in general."]  
Well, somehow, I don't think he was talking about 'just life in general.'  
["Yes, anyway, what happened next?"]  
That's the thing...

When he opened his eyes again, he turned pale, stood up, said "Excuse me," and promptly entered a small closet.  
He shut the door and locked himself in.  
Naturally, we were stumped. I tried following his eyesight, and tried to see what he might have seen that scared him.  
I mean, after looking, it was easy to tell he was looking out the window.. but nothing was out there.  
["Did you try looking around the exterior of the shack, to see if someone had perhaps walked by the window?"]  
Funny you should say that.

I had neglected to mention this up to now, but.. during his story, I.. I just knew someone was walking by the window.  
Y'know that feeling you get when you just know someone's right behind you? That's what I felt.  
I didn't want to mention that, 'cause.. I thought it was just nerves.  
["I want you to mention everything to me, Shadow. This is interesting stuff."]  
'Interesting stuff?'  
[Shadow chuckles]  
["Well... yes. I'm sorry; that was rather unprofessional of me."]  
It's alright, doc. I need some laughs, myself, to get me through this story.  
["Alright. What happened then?"]

Seeing that nobody was out the window, I knocked on the closet door. I asked him if he saw someone outside the window.  
["And?"]  
He said, "No." I asked, "Well, if you didn't see a person, why are you so scared?"  
Then he said something that I will never forget. Ever.  
["Really? And what was that?"]  
[Shadow gulps and inhales]  
"I did see him."

[At this point, Shadow begins showing signs of anxiety and paranoia. Subject begins perspirating and looking around.]

["......oh, I see."]  
Yeah, not a very comforting thing to hear when in a shack in the middle of nowhere.  
Dark didn't get it, but Shade and his future self were silent, arms crossed. Red was still thinking things through.  
Dark then openly asked, "Wait, what?"  
I had to tell him. So I did.

"Dark... if he saw a person.. but he didn't see anyone outside the window..."  
Dark got it. He turned white.  
We looked around. Red asked, "Where can someone hide in a place like this?"  
As we looked for a few minutes, the future Shade was just standing there, patiently waiting for us to stop.  
["He knew something you didn't?"]  
As a matter of fact.. he did.

Eventually, I stopped in horror, and the future Shade said, "You gettin' it, kid?"  
["What did you get?"]  
I realized.. I.. I... ah.  
[Shadow takes a deep breath]

The others were clueless. Future Shade simply tipped his head towards the only other door in the room.  
[".....oh. Right."]  
We all slowly turned to face the closet door.  
Red quietly mumbled "He's been awfully quiet."

I stepped closer and pressed my ear (area) to the door.  
Silence. I said, "Hello?"  
We waited.  
Waited minutes.  
Nothing.  
["Did you try opening the door?"]  
Yes. Thankfully, it was locked.

After waiting, we turned around and headed for the exit.  
As we stepped out of the threshold, there was a voice.  
A deep voice.  
A quick voice.  
"Hello?"  
It sounded much like my own.

We all froze. I turned, and said, "Run."  
So we ran as far as we could from that place.  
We never heard anything about that old man, that shack, or that ghastly urban legend.  
Eventually, the highway reached its end in some old town, and I found the chaos drive in a bank.

There. That's it. I'm done. If you wanna call me crazy and lock me up, go right ahead.  
[".....you said you turned in that shack. What did you see?"]

[The tape ends there.]

 

**Tale Two: The Tale of the Fourth Chaos Drive (Hide and Seek)**

  
[cut to the Chao World, thirty years in the future]  
[Shadow, Shade, Dark, and Red suddenly appear on a hill overlooking a forest]  
Red: ...wait, what?  
[Shadow holds back some tears, then puts on a bold face]  
Shadow: Doesn't matter. C'mon. Let's go. Chaos drives to get, after all.  
Shade: Th..that's the spirit, kid. That's the spirit.  
Shadow: I wonder where we are now, anyway.  
Red: I think ol' whatsisface said something about going to a different location on the Chao World... same time, of course.  
Dark: Great. Same stupid Chao World, same stupid future...  
Shade: Whoa, Dark, what's wrong? Where's your sense of adventure gone?  
Dark: It died as soon as we got here.  
Shadow: I feel that. But, look, we've got to keep our game up. Remember EarthBound?  
Dark: Y..yes. Why?  
Shadow: Remember the tea break? If we're struggling, that means our foe is, too.  
Dark: ...  
Shadow: We've just got to pull it together. The Veteran's Committee wants us to give up. But will we?  
Dark: ..n..no.  
Shadow: Of course not! That's exactly what they WANT us to do. So, c'mon, let's put on our game face.  
Dark: *sigh* ......you make a good point. I can't keep being so sad and worrying!  
Shadow: Hell no, you can't.  
Dark: It's like I always say, "worry about it when you have a worrywart on your toe!"  
Shade: And don't forget "we'll cross that bridge when Dark burns it."  
Dark: You guys really say that?  
Red: We most certainly do.  
Dark: Wow... I feel like a silly willy video will for worrying over nothing.  
Shadow: Well, now... you weren't worrying over nothing. It's the biggest foe we've fought yet.  
Shade: Hahaha, eff yeah, it is!  
Dark: But.. but then--  
Shadow: --But then we're not worrying about it 'cause we're Dark chao.  
Shade: Not just ANY Dark chao, Shadow. You're close, though. I'll let you keep running this pep talk.  
Shadow: Not just any Dark chao..... ah, yes! We're the main protagonists!  
Shade: Bingo.  
Shadow: And the main protagonists rarely ever die, at least.. not in DJay's works.  
Dark: That.. that's.. that's true.  
Red: What more, there's one more important thing of which we'd better take note, guys...  
Shadow: And what's that, Red? The fact that Shade's here?  
Shade: The fact that Shadow's here?  
Red: The date.  
Shade+Shadow+Dark: The date?  
Shadow: Which would be...?  
Red: No idea. But it's still a very important thing to note. We'd better try and find some way of learning the date soon.  
Shade: Hmm.. I've not considered that theory, Red. Importance of Dates in Dark Chao Adventures...  
Shadow: ...I'm not quite comfortable with this conversation. We're turning too meta for my tastes.  
Shade: Don't worry about it. Red and I are just doing some research on the show.  
Red: Anyway, we REALLY should try moving from this spot. Let's explore around and find out what's going on.  
[they head down the hill into the forest]

Log Entry #1 (Shadow: Last Time, on DCA...)  
Um.. I have randomly decided to keep a log for this quest. "I" being Shadow, of course. If the others wanted to, they'd..  
probably say so, themselves, or something. Anyway, I realize that (in this transcript of our journey), things aren't  
explained too well at this point. I feel the need to mention that we have just acquired our third chaos drive. It was  
underwater, in a city called "Euphoria." The written version of the tale is known as "Quinquenquoi." I just saw my father,  
Andrew Ryder, probably die.

[cut to the forest; sun is rising (morning time)]  
[the chao hike through a few acres of blandness]  
[they hear the occasional woodland critter, and birds singing]  
Shadow: *sniff* Wow, this is a wonderful forest! Wonderful morning, too.  
Red: *yawn* Yeah, I just wish we could have gotten a good night's sleep. We haven't slept since before the Euphoria quest.  
Dark: Eah, tell me about it...  
Shadow: Don't worry, guys. I'm sure this quest will give us plenty of opportunities to sleep.  
Red: Hopefully.  
[after a few minutes of trekking, they come across a sudden vista-- rows of huge trees, and I mean HUUUUUGE trees]  
[pictures have been etched into them, pictures of stickmen and hearts and.... stuff]  
[some of the trees even have huge faces carved into them-- the ones that do have ONLY the face on them, nothing more]  
[the huge faces have gaping mouths and boring eyes]  
[the chao stand in awe]  
Shade: ....well! This is interesting, innit?  
Shadow: It seems we cannot continue down this path.  
[down in the path between the rows of trees is an even bigger tree]  
[this tree has no leaves, and does not happen to have a face etched on it]  
[in fact, it does not have anything at all etched onto it]  
Red: ...strange.  
Shadow: What's up?  
Red: This tree... this large one, in the path.. it appears completely untouched. Not a knife or utensil has touched it.  
Dark: What's so strange about that?  
Shade: Well, for one thing, all these other trees obviously HAVE. And this one seems much older than the others.  
Shadow: Maybe it's part of some ritual?  
Red: Possibly.  
[they stand around for a bit more]  
Shadow: ...huh. Hey, guys. There's a faint stone pathway leading over here.  
[they follow the stone path back deeper into the forest]  
[it leads them down an acre of woods]  
[eventually, the path winds a lot and.. curves.. and.. whatnot]  
[after a bit of walking down the acre, which I just found out is not even as big as a football field -.-, they find..]  
Shadow: A village!  
Dark: Maybe there's food?  
Shade: You and your food...  
Dark: What? I'm hungry!

Log Entry #2 (Shadow: The Village First Impressions)  
So after some exploration, we ended up finding this little village, deep in the woods. About five or six buildings, all made  
of stone. The whole place seems about as empty as can be. Not a soul. Hell, the buildings look ancient. At least fifty years  
old, anyway. Yet, you wanna know the odd part? The number of leaves on the ground here equal the number of people. Yeah, not  
a single leaf on the ground. It's all stone. But.. there are plenty of trees around. There are even some trees in the stone  
walkway, as decoration.

The first building we checked out seemed to be some sort of chief hut of sorts. Like.. you can just tell it's the kind of  
house a village leader would stay in. Fancy trophies of sorts above the fireplace, important ceremonial things cluttered  
everywhere... yeah. Upon leaving the building, we found the chief standing in the center of the village, looking at us.  
The chief.. how to describe him? He was a chao, of course. Chao World and all. He was wearing animal fur clothes, and a type  
of.. tiger hat? I dunno. He was also carrying a cane, as he was pretty old.

Shadow: Um... hello there! My name is Shadow. We are looking for some ch--  
Chief: We do not harbour travelers.  
Shadow: Well, that's fine; we just want to know if you know where th--  
[the chief enters his hut, and tells the others to enter]  
Chief: Here. Take it.  
[the chief gives Shadow a chaos drive]  
Shadow: Wh..what? Really? I can has?  
Chief: Please, traveler... take it. This is what you need, right?  
Shadow: Well.. yes..  
Chief: This is ALL you need?  
Shadow: Yeah.  
Chief: Then please take it and leave. Go back from where you came. And hurry.

Log Entry #3 (Shadow: Leaving)  
So.... we took it. And we left. Well, okay, so just before we left the village, the chief ran to us and told us one last  
thing.  
"Um.. by any chance, on your way here, did you happen to pass by a row of trees? With faces on them?"  
I replied, "Yeah, the aisle with that one tree in the middle of it?"  
Then he stared at me in confusion. "What? What tree in the middle of it?"  
"It.. it's a huge tree. Bigger than the rest. It has no face or carvings in it, either, nor does it have leaves."  
Then he seemed to look pale. Maybe it was just my imagination. He then said to us,  
"Does not matter. Just.. go quickly. Do not worry about that aisle of trees. Just go by, and.. don't look at the trees."  
He then left us.

So we left. And, just for the heck of it, we ran. No sense in dillying or dallying, right? And when we got to the vista...  
We turned and kept running. We didn't look. Nope. Not one peep. After all, the chief had no reason to lie to us. He seemed  
trustworthy. So we ran down those acres. We reached the last hill, and.. and...

Oh, we DID look. We did. I'll admit it. When we got to the vista, we chuckled and said, "He's.. probably just trying to scare  
us. I mean, you know... coupl'a travelers... perfect bait for a scare. Right?" I mean, it made sense. At the time.  
What did we see? Well... actually, it didn't look that different. Thinking about it, I don't think it had really changed  
at all.

Back at that last hill... well.. that's the thing. We couldn't find our way out of the forest. It was.. just.. trees.  
A neverending sea of trees, as far as the eye can see.

[cut to an acre of woods; nothing but trees everywhere, seeming to go on for miles]  
Shadow: Um.. okay. I'm sure we just passed that tree, right there.  
Dark: We're birch?  
Shadow: No, just--what?  
Dark: I mean, lost? Sorry. Got trees on the brain, I guess.  
Shadow: Well no, just.. misplaced. We'll find our way out.  
Red: ...there goes that tree again.  
Shadow: Sheesh, again? Where the heck are we?  
Shade: ..listen.  
[they stand still for a second and listen closely]  
[light rustling is heard]  
Shadow: ...I don't hear anything.  
Shade: Yeah, but didn't we hear birds and woodland critters earlier?  
Shadow: .......DID we?  
Red: I'm sure we did, yeah. What happened?  
[the rustling stops]  
Dark: Pfft, there goes that same tree again.  
Shadow: Man, how many times are we going to pass that thing?  
Red: I say we should remember its appearance, and use it as some form of landmark.  
Shadow: Good idea.

Log Entry #4 (Shadow: Landmark Tree)  
This is a tall tree. I mean, REALLY tall. It easily towers over most of the other trees. It's also a sorta slim one.  
Looking up at the top, it's got tons of leaves and some branches.. and.. it's a tree.  
But, most distinguishable about it, is that it is a considerably dark tree. Easy to spot from the others.

[birds sing again, critters make noises]  
Shadow: Good. At least it's not as eerie here anymore.  
Shade: Hey kid, isn't that the village, right there?  
[they find a side entrance to the village from earlier]  
[they enter the chief's hut again; he is there]  
Chief: What? You return?  
Shadow: Yeah, uh... we.. got lost.  
Dark: Knew it.  
Chief: 'Lost?' Could you not find the way out?  
Shade: That's the thing... no, we couldn't. Maybe we forgot where we came in, or something...  
Shadow: It was all trees, as far as we could see.  
Chief: Well... welcome to the village, then.  
Shadow: I thought travelers were not welcome.  
Chief: You are no longer travelers.  
Shade: What's THAT supposed to mean?  
Chief: ..doesn't matter. You are here on a peculiar day, you know. You might even say we were... expecting you.  
Red: What?  
Chief: Every year, it seems, on this day... we get travelers exploring the woods.  
Shade: You don't say. And what IS today?  
Chief: A village tradition.. the eve of the day celebrating old chief Hallow, said to repel evil from our town.  
Red: H..Hallow's Eve?  
Shade: Aw, jeez, you're not talking about Halloween, are you?  
Chief: We call it that, yes.. Hallowe'en.  
Shadow: What happens to the travelers exploring the woods each year?  
Chief: They spend the night, then leave the next day.  
Shadow: Well.. guess we're spending the night here, too.  
Chief: That's.. that's fine.  
[the chief sets up a room for the chao]  
[cut to later on, about.. I dunno, eleven in the morning; the chao are sitting around in the room]  
[the room being one of the deserted buildings in the village]  
Red: Shadow, are you mad? We can't spend the night here!  
Shadow: Why not? We've got the chaos drive. I think this would be a great opportunity for us to take a well-needed rest.  
Red: But.. but the date... *yawn* ugh, the date..  
[Red curls up on a bed, and closes his eyes]  
Red: We.. I..... okay, you make a good point. I guess I'll... worry about the date when I wake up.  
Shade: There ya go. Get some rest, guys. But make sure we're all awake by eight, kay?  
Shadow: What's happening at eight?  
Shade: Well, let's just say that a rest isn't the only thing we've been needing for a while.  
Red: *yaaaawwwwwwnnnnn* Man, Shade... if... if I didn't know better, I'd.. say... you're speaking meta to us.  
Shade: Heh.. think of it what you will. Just be ready by half-past seven. Go on, guys, rest.  
Dark: Ya don't have to tell ME twice.  
[Dark hops onto a bed and sleeps]  
[when Shadow, too, goes to sleep, Shade leaves the room]

Log Entry #5 (Shade: Research)  
Yeah, so.. since I put my name on the title of this entry, that means it's me, Shade, got it? Right. Well.  
While the others may want to sleep, I can't keep my eyes shut 'til I've gotten some answers.  
This village is way too... vague for my tastes.  
The whole business with the surrounding forest doesn't help, either.  
I guess what I'm saying is... I'm getting some major danger vibes.

My first line of investigation will pertain to the village chief. I have decided to enter his hut, and ask some questions.  
Now, there is something a little odd. In the second Log Entry, upon entering the hut, Shadow mentioned, and I quote...  
"Fancy trophies of sorts above the fireplace, important ceremonial things cluttered everywhere... yeah."  
Upon MY entering of the hut, I have yet to see any fireplace. However, his statement is justified.  
I, too, felt that there was a fireplace in here when I first entered. Hell, I was expecting to see one as I entered just now.

Why in the world would we honestly believe there's a fireplace without seeing one? I shall pursue this question later.

Alright, back to the investigation at hand. The chief is inside his hut, as is expected. He asked how he may help me, and I  
explained how I just wanted to take a look around, maybe ask some questions. He gave me permission to do so.  
The interior of the hut is otherwise just as Shadow described. Ceremonial ornaments hung on the walls, and some other  
random doodads scattered everywhere. Now... there IS a notebook labelled "Forest Off-Limits," but the chief has requested  
that I do not look at its contents. Other than that, there really is nothing of note.

I spoke with the chief, and asked him some questions. A transcript is included.

Shade: So, chief, mind if I ask some things?  
Chief: Go right ahead.  
Shade: First of all, what is this part of the Chao World called?  
Chief: This, particularly, is the forest of Sancheria.  
Shade: And where on the Chao World is it?  
Chief: It's somewhere deep in the Dark Valley.  
Shade: That's.. that's.. where?  
Chief: Well, the very center of Dark chao activity. Think of.. uh.. New York?  
Shade: So the valley is like New York, and this would be...?  
Chief: Sancheria is in the direct center of the valley. People don't acknowledge it, though.  
Shade: And why don't they?  
Chief: Well, people are told that this place is really boring. So there.  
Shade: Alright. Moving on, uh.. it's quite a forest out there, huh?  
Chief: Indeed. This forest is the pride and joy of Darku.  
Shade: Pride and joy that is rarely visited?  
Chief: Oh, it.. it used to be visited often. But lately, they've been trying to modernize things with.. technology and stuff.  
Shade: So people have been sticking to cities and the like?  
Chief: Yes.  
Shade: ...you know why we got lost.. don't you?  
Chief: ......as a matter of fact, I do. You didn't get lost. The forest did.  
Shade: Wait, what? The.. the forest got lost? How...?  
Chief: One of the main reasons people don't come here is that.. the people who do.... never come back.  
Shade: I see. So let me take a shot in the dark. The forest changes?  
Chief: Something like that. When I first met you folk, I had hoped you'd be able to get back in time.  
Shade: Of course, we didn't. We.. we kinda looked. At the aisles of trees.  
Chief: .......I knew it. It's alright. Everyone does.

The chief looked around, then leaned closer to me.

Chief: Earlier, you mentioned, um... a.. large tree? In the center of the aisle?  
Shade: Uh, yeah, we saw a strange tree. It didn't look a thing like any tree we'd seen.  
Chief: Could you describe it to me?  
Shade: Off the top of my head... it is HUGE. And grey. It has no leaves whatsoever on it. The oddest part, though..  
Chief: Mmhmm...?  
Shade: It looked like it hadn't ever been touched by chao hands.  
Chief: No, the oddest part is that I, in all the years I've been here, have never seen that tree in my life.  
Shade: ...yes, that IS odd. That's extremely odd.  
Chief: Can you.. can you take me to show me this tree?  
Shade: Out.. out into the forest?  
Chief: Yes. Can you?  
Shade: I.. I suppose so.

So we left the hut and he followed me out to the forest. We walked through the same winding stone path up a couple acres...  
There it was. The huge tree. In the middle. Huge, grey, no leaves, untouched. It felt like looking at a big smudge on a  
beautiful painting. Not just any smudge, either. A CLASHING smudge.. one that easily stands out, even in the corner of your  
eyes. Look away, and you can still feel it nibbling away at the back of your eye. Almost as if.. it's staring at you.

The chief looked downright scared. I don't think he knew what the tree was, though. I think he was simply scared of it.  
That tree has that effect on people. Still, he stood there, examining it, giving it every once-over that he could.  
Me? I was too busy looking in another direction.

You see, another traveler was out in the woods. I had heard him rustling, turned to see him, and I finally saw him.  
It was a chao, although he was looking in the other direction. I only saw his head.  
Come to think of it... he didn't have an emotiball. Maybe he was somehow a human?

"Hey, you..." The chief said to me. "You.. didn't happen to.. do anything around here, did you?"

"No, not at all. Why?"

"Because.. there are more trees with faces on them than normal."

I looked for myself, and.. I'm not sure exactly how many more trees had faces, but there were definitely more with them on  
now. It was a little freaky, honestly, but.. I mean.. turning around next and not seeing the traveler was even freakier.

The chief then said to me, "..I think we should go back to the village now."

Looking at him again, it was obvious he was creeped out, although I'm not entirely sure why he would be THAT scared, since  
knowing him, he's probably seen scarier in his time.

I had may as well mention what the village chief looks like. He's a white chao... although he covers his emotiball with his  
ceremonial headdress. He covers much of his body with tribal clothes. I'm fairly certain he's neutral, though.

Anyway, we headed back to the village. On the way back, I'm sure I could hear various rustling noises... probably just the  
wildlife, though. Back in the village, the chief entered his hut, and I yawned. Yeah, I stood there and yawned. I was pretty  
tired. So I headed into our rooms, climbed into my bed, and fell asleep.

[cut to a clock in the room; it passes from 11:30 AM to 2:15 PM]  
[Shade gets up and heads out of the room]  
[minutes later, Red wakes up and exits]  
[cut to outside, in the village; Red exits the hut and finds Shade standing nearby, looking out at the forest]  
Red: Mornin'.  
Shade: Huh? Oh, right. ...you mean "afternoon."  
Red: Right.  
[Red stands next to Shade and looks out into the forest, as well]  
Red: What are you looking at?  
Shade: Not 'at.' 'For.' I'm looking for someone.  
Red: A person?  
Shade: I have reason to believe there's another chao out there. Saw him when I checked out the big tree with the chief.  
Red: You saw another chao?  
Shade: That's what I just said.  
Red: What did he look like?  
Shade: I... I'm really not that sure. I know.. he was sort of.. pale-ish yellow.  
Red: A color you can't quite define?  
Shade: Yeah. *looks at Red* You don't believe me, do you?  
Red: No, I believe you. We're essentially on an alien planet. Anything could happen.  
Shade: Here. *hands Red a notebook* I kept a log of my investigations.  
Red: Huh.  
[Red reads through Log Entry #5 as Shade keeps looking out]  
Red: I gotta say... this is a fancy new system.  
Shade: Well, I wanted to keep a log. So what?  
Red: I'm speaking metaliterately.  
Shade: ...oh, right. Yeah. Guess he's trying to organize the show a little. Make this special scare people.  
Red: So you caught on to my earlier Importance of Dates theory?  
Shade: It's more of a hypothesis, really. You've got some evidence behind it, after all. Just not recent.  
Red: Yeah. He had good reasons for not continuing the trend last year. Reasons he's correcting right now.  
Shade: Good point.  
Red: Y'know.... it feels kinda weird.... talking about this show as just that-- a show.  
Shade: Yeah.  
[Shade spots something]  
Shade: Hold on.  
[Shade stares off in the distance]  
Shade: ...got him.  
Red: You see him?  
Shade: Yeah. On top of that tree over there.  
Red: That's the tree we made a landmark out of!  
[the camera zooms in on a small, pale-ish yellow head on top of a tall tree]  
Shade: I'm.. I'm gonna try to get closer.  
[Shade quietly moves into the woods]  
Red: Sh.. Shade..!  
[Red follows him]

Log Entry #6 (Shade: Closer to the Traveler)  
It was a little difficult moving through those woods without making much noise... the guy I was approaching didn't notice  
us, though. His back was always turned. He was awfully high up on that tree, though. After a minute or so of walking, Red  
said something to me, but I couldn't really hear what he said. I asked him to say it again, and he said, "The Landmark Tree  
is THIS way..."

I quietly said, "Well, there's obviously another Landmark Tree, then. C'mon."

We got a little closer, then found a relatively big hole in the ground. A ladder was in it, going down. The hole was just  
about big enough for a regular human to fit through, so we could easily fit in there. That wasn't our goal, mind you, but...  
when we stopped looking at the hole, the traveler was gone.

[Shade and Red looked around their surroundings]  
Shade: Do you see any trace of him? Any clue?  
Red: Not a thing.  
Shade: What about the tree?  
Red: Wh.. what do you mean?  
Shade: Do you see the tree he was perched atop?  
Red: Wasn't it right over--  
[Red looks, but in all directions is nothing but the same woods for miles and miles]  
Red: ...where?  
Shade: Well, looks like we've got ourselves not only a vanishing wanderer, but a magical tree, as well.  
Red: Maybe we were just seeing things?  
Shade: Both of us?  
Red: If your brain truly believes something...  
Shade: *sigh* It's.. it's possible.  
Red: Anyway, I think the more important question is-- what's up with this hole in the ground?  
Shade: You wanna find out?  
Red: Sounds like a plan.

Log Entry #7 (Red: Hole in the Ground)  
Shade went down the ladder first, and I followed suit. Heading down it was rather bothersome, actually... the hole was  
surprisingly deep, and the further down we climbed, the more the tunnel seemed to get thinner and thinner. Light got scarce,  
albeit there was still some sunlight when Shade finally struck solid ground. He made a grunt, and said, "Bottom." I made it  
seconds later.

The cavern at the bottom was awe-inspiring. It was an impressively large chamber, with one corner being next to us. The other  
walls stretched out for at least a few... well, what we referred to above-ground as "acres." In front of us, there was  
an underground pond of sorts. I mean, not too big or anything, but.. it was definitely water that stretched out a few acres.  
Oh, I completely neglected to mention.. scattered out along the walls were a series of torches, letting us see.

Other than the pond and the torches, there wasn't much of note from first glance. Still, it was more than impressive.

After a bit of standing in awe, Shade walked towards the pond. When he got there, he reached down and brushed his hand  
through the water. And, well.. a few seconds later, he got back up, turned to me, and said, "Let's go."

[the chao climb up the ladder again]  
[they head back to their rooms; nothing of importance happens]  
[the clock on the wall reads "3:00 PM"]  
Shade: I.. I think I'm gonna try to get some more sleep.  
Red: Alright. I'll try the same.  
[they get back to sleep]  
[at 5:45 PM, Dark wakes up]  
Dark: Mmm... gotta man.  
[Dark gets out of bed and exits the room]  
[at 5:58 PM, Shadow wakes up]  
[he flips over in bed and looks out the window]  
[he sees a chao in the forest, facing away, no visible emotiball, palish-yellow]  
[Shadow stares at the chao for a while]  
Red: *yawn* Shadow, you awake?  
[Shadow flips over to look at Red]  
Shadow: Yeah, what's up?  
Red: Oh, nothing, just wondering if you were awake, that's all.  
[Shadow flips back over, only to find the other chao's head right next to the window (facing away)]  
[Shadow yells and falls out of bed]  
[Shade is woken up, and he and Red look at Shadow]  
Shade: Kid, you alright?  
Shadow: The.. I mean...  
[Shadow gets up and looks out the window; nothing is there]  
Shadow: ....yeah, I'm.. I'm fine. Just a.. bad dream. ....can I trade beds with someone?  
Shade: Sleep in Dark's bed, if you want. Speaking of, where is he?  
[Dark is still gone]  
Red: Maybe he went to the bathroom?  
Shadow: Eh, I'll look for him.  
[Shadow leaves the room]  
[cut to outside the hut; Shadow walks out and sees the Chief]  
Chief: Ho, Green One.  
Shadow: Ho, Chief.  
Chief: What's wrong? You seem as if you are looking for someone.  
Shadow: Uh.. yeah, our pal, Dark. He's a regular Dark chao. You know where he went?  
Chief: I believe he said he was going to the bathroom.  
Shadow: Great, and where's the bathroom?  
Chief: Down at the other end of the village.  
Shadow: Peculiar place to put a toilet.  
Chief: Eh, quit whining.  
[Shadow heads down to the other end of the village]

Log Entry #8 (Shadow: The Far End of the Village)  
Well, this village is kinda creepy. I mean, I didn't realize it was so large. Why the heck is it so huge for just one little  
chao? Surely, he doesn't need all this space. I mean, look at this! The buildings are oddly grey and heavily worn down...  
The street is destroyed and littered with rubble... the forest is even starting to grow in the buildings. Tons of vines and  
ferns and.. ugh. Freaky.

After a bit of walking, I was able to find a little.. what looks like an outhouse. Small, made of birch, smelly.. yep, it's an  
outhouse. I walked up to it and knocked on the front door. "Dark?" I asked if he was there. No answer. So I asked again.  
Still nothing. So I did a stupid thing and opened the door. You know what was in there?  
Well, actually as soon as I opened the door, I could've sworn I heard someone behind me, so I quickly turned around.

Of course, nobody was there when I turned. So I looked back, and for a split second, there was Dark, covered in blood and  
feces, head buried in the toilet. I screamed, but I then realized what I saw was just a figment of my imagination, 'cause  
after I blinked, it was empty. So I got myself together, closed the door, and looked around. There was a little rustling  
nearby, coming from some random hut.. and good ol' Dark walked on out.

Shadow: Dark!  
Dark: Ho, Shadow. What's up?  
Shadow: Well.. um.. nothing. We were just looking for you.  
Dark: I was only going to the bathroom.  
Shadow: But there's an outhouse there.  
Dark: Yeah, but there's a TOILET in HERE.  
Shadow: ..oh. Okay. You coming back to bed, then?  
Dark: Yeah. How much time we got? About two hours?  
Shadow: Until eight, yes, although it might help to wake up half an hour earlier.  
Dark: Man. I'm fine with an hour and a half's worth of sleep.  
Shadow: Good, so.. let's get back to bed.  
[Shadow and Dark head back to their room.. place, and go to sleep]  
Shade: You found him?  
Shadow: Yeah, we're all good. Now let's get to bed.  
[they fall asleep once more]  
[this time, they finally wake up (finally) at 7:30 PM]  
Shade: *yawn* Hey.. hey, guys. Get up.  
Shadow: Eah.. what time is it?  
Shade: Seven-thirty.  
Shadow: ..cool.  
Red: Half an hour left, huh?  
Dark: I'm going to the bathroom again.  
[Dark gets out of bed and heads for the toilet]  
Shade: Heh.. hey, Dark, I'm after you!  
[Shade follows Dark]  
Red: ..don't you need to go?  
Shadow: Don't YOU?  
Red: Nah. I'm strange like that.  
Shadow: Alright.  
[they get out of bed, stretch]  
Red: ..what did you see?  
Shadow: Huh?  
Red: Earlier, you saw something out the window, and fell out of bed. What did you see?  
Shadow: ..a.. a chao. The back of a chao's head.  
Red: Really? ..hm.  
Shadow: Don't tell me.. you've seen him, too.  
Red: Here. Check this out.  
[Red hands Shadow Log Entry #6; he reads through it]  
Shadow: Damn. Checks out, alright.  
Red: I've been doing some thinking about our little traveler.  
Shadow: I have, too. I fear we've both come to the same conclusion.  
Red: It's no chao.  
Shadow: It's a space station.  
Red: Wha?  
Shadow: ..just a little joke. Yeah, it's no chao.  
Red: .....oh, haha, I get it. *chuckle* That's.. heh. That's pretty good.  
Shadow: But yeah, no, we're thinking the exact same thing, right?  
Red: About who, or what, our little friend is?  
Shadow: Well, I actually don't.. really.. have a clue.  
Red: Oh, alright. Well, for the record, I do.  
Shadow: You do? Then what is it?  
Red: ..I can't tell you. I have a feeling of how this script's gonna play out, and it's not quite time to say it yet.  
Shadow: The script?  
Red: Yeah. But first, let's see what Shade has planned for us.  
Shadow: Right.. I'd quite like to know what'll happen at eight.  
Red: On Halloween? I think I can guess.  
Shade: So tell me.  
[Shade and Dark come back in]  
Shade: Tell me, Red. What's your guess?  
Red: Uh.. I'm guessing that you're gonna want us to go on some dark, scary adventure.  
Shade: And you'd be absolutely correct.  
Dark: Really, Shade? We're going on ANOTHER adventure?  
Shade: Well, look at it this way-- the Veteran's Committee probably wants us to risk our lives more than once. Tonight.  
Shadow: I getcha. So you think doing this will net us another chaos drive.  
Shade: That, and we sure as hell ain't sitting out on Halloween again.  
Red: Ack. Good argument.  
Shade: Right. Now. For Halloween tonight, we're gonna need to all wear a similar subway.  
Dark: SUBWAY EAT FRESH  
Shade: fffff, sorry 'bout that. Got Subway on the brain, I guess. But we're gonna need to all wear a similar costume.  
Shadow: How about we be the guys from Marble Hornets?  
Shade: One, there were only, like.. two main characters in that. Two, it's hard to dress up as casual people.  
Red: How about the Ghost Busters?  
Dark: How about the MYTH Busters?  
Shadow: What about The Who?  
Red: Yeah, sure, let's wander around town, carrying instruments.  
Shade: How about The Beatles?  
Red: Same argument.  
Shadow: Delta Force, from Gears of War?  
Shade: Nah.. me and Dark already did that.  
Dark: Wait, what if we're the guys from Marble Hornets.. but specifically, Jay, Alex, Tim, and Birch?  
Shade: You mean Brian?  
Dark: Yeah!  
Shade: ...that could work. I'm not sure what's up with you guys' sudden interest in that, though.  
Shadow: Doesn't matter. You guys want to do that?  
Red: Sure. I'll be Brian, the unimportant one.  
Dark: Sure! I call Tim, or "Masky."  
Shade: Eh, why not? I'll be Alex, the main protagonist.  
Shadow: Guess that makes me Jay, the narrator.  
[Dark puts on a yellow jacket and white mask]  
[Red puts on.. boring.. clothes, or whatever]  
[Shade puts on a baseball cap and grabs a handheld video camera]  
[Shadow simply grabs another video camera]  
[they head out the door]  
[outside, at 7:45...]  
[they go check in on the chief]  
Shade: Ho, chief.  
Chief: Oh! Ho, boys. What.. ah, you're dressing up. For Hallow's Eve.  
Dark: I'm Masky. :3 LEAD ME TO THE ARK.  
Chief: *chuckle* Excellent. You guys look pretty convincing... for chao, I mean.  
Shadow: You know who we're..?  
Chief: Why, yes.. I used to have access to a computer, back in the day. I saw it end, though.  
Red: But.. but Marble Hornets started last year. And only just ended Part 1 a little while ago.  
Chief: Oh, has it only been that long? It certainly feels like it's been longer than that. I guess it's the forest.  
Shade: Who are you?  
Chief: Hahahah.. you know me. I'm just head of a little village.. in the forest. I'm the village chief.  
Red: Always leader, yet no one to lead.  
Chief: Exactly.  
Dark: *gasp* Wait...  
Chief: Yes, Dark, you always WERE the quickest of the bunch, even if you didn't show it.  
Dark: Yeah, you're..! You're REAALLY familiar!  
Chief: I'm surprised. Anyway, enough about me. What are you boys doing?  
Shade: Right. Well. We're just gonna.....  
Chief: Explore the dark, spooky woods? Alone? See what you can find?  
Shade: Yes, exactly that.  
Shadow: Oh, really? THAT'S what we were gonna do?  
Chief: Yes, your leader was gonna get around to telling you that. ..eventually.  
[the chief patted Shade on the back]  
Chief: You haven't changed a bit, Shade.  
Shade: What?  
Chief: There are a few things you need to know about the forest before you go and do this.  
Shade: Ah, yes. Like?  
Chief: There is.... a....  
Shade: Let me guess. Another chao out there? A sort of.. palish-orange..ish chao?  
Chief: Huh?  
Shade: I saw him when we were out in the woods, you and me. He was looking away, though, so I couldn't catch his face.  
Chief: Oh, so you saw him. That's.. that's who I was going to mention.  
Shade: Yeah, what's.. what's up with him? Me and Red saw him earlier, too, and he was on top of a really tall tree...  
[a chill is sent down the chief's spine]  
Shade: But when we got closer, he AND the whole tree disappeared.  
Chief: Y..... hm. How to explain this? Well... that.. that is no chao.  
[Red and Shadow begin to look a little hopeless]  
[the chief mulls it over]  
Chief: Well.. all you need to know for now is.. if you see him, watch out. Try to pretend you didn't.  
[the chao look at each other]  
Chief: Okay. Next. That aisle of trees.  
Shade: Avoid it?  
Chief: Yes!  
Shade: At all costs?  
Chief: At all costs.  
Shadow: What's the deal with that aisle, anyway?  
Chief: Doesn't matter. Just avoid it.  
Shadow: Fine. What else?  
Shade: Wait, I forgot something. Uh.. when Red and I were looking around earlier, we found a.. hole in the ground.  
Chief: ..were there bodies around it?  
Shade: !!! ..no, actually.. there was a ladder.  
Chief: Oh. ..oh. Oh, THAT hole. Heh.. um.. yes, sorry.  
Shade: Although this other hole is starting to sound interesting.  
Chief: I'll.. um.. well.. if you see dead bodies in a clearing around a hole in the ground... avoid it.  
Red: I think you're just trying to give us a list of things to avoid.  
Chief: Pretty much, yeah. Now, regarding the hole with the ladder in it...  
Shade: Oh, we went down it. May as well tell you.  
Chief: ..........and you found..?  
Shade: An enormous cavern. There was a pond down there, too, which I dipped my hand in.  
Chief: You did WHAT?!  
Shade: Yeah.. heh heh... but it.. I mean, it was....  
Chief: Not water? Correct. So you left?  
Shade: Right after testing the water, yes.  
Chief: Good.  
Shadow: Any other things for us to steer clear of?  
Red: Yeah, I mean, you pretty much just told us not to go North or East.  
Chief: Personally, I don't want you boys going ANYWHERE outside of this damn village! Especially not tonight, of all nights!  
[pause as the chief calms down]  
Chief: But.. but I realize what you're drivin' at. You have to find some way out of here. You have places to go.  
Shadow: We can't stay here. The Veteran's Committee.. well, these bad guys.. they.. it's a long story.  
Chief: Very well. In that case, I have one last warning for you.  
Red: Yes?  
Chief: I want you all to listen VERY, VERY, VERY carefully.  
Dark: I'm listening!  
Chief: I mean this. You have to SERIOUSLY pay CLOSE attention.  
Shade: We hear ya!  
Chief: Heed my warning. This is vital!  
Shadow: Tell us. We're all ears.  
Chief: Do.  
[pause]  
Chief: Not.  
[pause]  
Chief: Go.  
[pause]  
Chief: In.  
[pause]  
Chief: Any.  
[pause]  
Chief: Houses.  
[pause]  
Chief: Do not go in any houses. Tell me that.  
Shadow: Do not go in any houses!  
Shade: Do not go in any houses.  
Red: Do not go in any houses.  
Dark: DO NOT GO IN ANY HOUSES!  
Chief: Do NOT go in any houses. Let's all say that, one last time.  
All: Do not go in any houses!  
Chief: Now, what won't you be going in?  
All: ANY HOUSES!  
Chief: And if you see a house, what will you NOT do?  
All: GO IN!  
Chief: Oh, and.. keep your eyes on the trees. That's all. Okay, you can go.  
[the chief hurries the chao out of his hut]  
[pause]  
Shade: Okay, anybody else REALLY wanna go in a house now?  
Dark: Word.  
Red: I dunno, guys.. I mean, he DID tell us not to.  
Shadow: Red has a point. After all, he must be telling us not to for a VERY good reason.  
Shade: Ah, I was only kidding. So, who's gonna write down all the stuff we shouldn't do?  
Shadow: I got it.

Entry #9 (Shadow: What We SHOULD NOT Do)  
If we value our lives in any form, we should NOT, under any circumstances,  
\- Follow and/or approach the "other chao."  
\- Go near that aisle of trees.  
\- Enter any holes in the ground, whether surrounded by bodies, or with a ladder inside.  
\- Go in any houses.  
\- Go in ANY houses.  
\- Go NEAR any houses.  
\- Enter any houses.  
\- Go in any houses.  
Oh, and we must make sure to keep our eyes on the trees. That sounds fairly easy, considering we'll be in a forest.

Entry #10 (Shade: Recapping the Day)  
We've spent a good several hours getting some long-earned, relaxing rest today. The rest of the day was spent doing a bit of  
investigating in and around this little village. So far, we've learned how not just Chao Talk, but pretty much the entire  
Chao World is severely screwed up in the head! Other people spying on us, holes in the ground that lead to impressive  
caverns, trees that change.. in more ways than one! I think it's safe to say that we are gonna have fun tonight.

Entry #11 (Dark: Looking Forward to This)  
MANIt's been a pretty boring day for me. MANI just basically got here, left, got here AGAIN, then slept all day, got up, went to  
the toilet, got back in bed, dressed up for Halloween, talked with some old friend, then wrote in a journal! So I can't wait  
to go into these spooky woods and get my pants scared off!

Entry #12 (Red: That Stranger...)  
I know. I know.. who that stranger is. I'm positive... that I know. I know that Shadow knows, as well. We both.. are certain.  
Why else would we recommend the Marble Hornets crew? Although, I think Brian died in that. It was never confirmed. He might  
have been. Whatever. All I know is, that man.. that man is.. going to kill us. It's going to be a long night.

 

[the scene changes to a forest road; a pick-up truck is driving through]  
[it's still 8 o' clock]  
[inside the truck are Mecha Knuckles, the Tails Doll, and Mephiles]  
MK: Right. I think we're nearly there. Mephiles, Doll, remember the plan?  
TD: Of course. The chaos drive's ten miles down, in a well protected by the government. Mephiles will distract the guards by doing his impression of Christopher Walken--  
[suddenly, Mecha swerves off the road, and they crash]

**Tale Three: The Tale of the Fifth Chaos Drive (Wrecked)**  
_(Based on "Nightmare House" by We Create Stuff)_

[cut to the side of the road, Mephiles wakes up to find the others up]  
Mp: Ugh.. what... what happened?  
TD: Numbnuts over here crashed the truck.  
Mp: Why the heck did you do THAT?!  
MK: There.. there was someone in the street. I didn't want to hit her.  
TD: Mecha, you're.. you're MECHA. Running people over is part of your job description.  
MK: Yeah, but this was.. she looked young, and emotionally effed-up. I couldn't bring myself..  
TD: Well...  
[they look to the road, and find it utterly deserted]  
TD: Where is she now?  
[they continue looking for a while, then look at each other]  
Mp: Ah, doesn't matter. What matters is that we've crashed, and we still have ten miles to go.  
TD: Great. Just GREAT. Now we have to WALK it.  
MK: Wait.. guys, do you see that?  
TD: What?  
MK: I think it's...  
[Mecha heads off into the forest]  
MK: Yeah, it's...!  
Mp: Hey, wait up!  
TD: Butthole! Don't go wandering off!  
[they chase after him]  
[they come upon a great big house in the middle of the woods]  
MK: It is! It's a house!  
TD: Get back h--oh, well I'll be damned.  
Mp: Looks haunted.  
[the bots look at him]  
Mp: Um... I... I like haunted houses. I'm not scared or anything.  
MK: Maybe these guys can help us out?  
[Mecha finds a shed and enters it]  
TD: What the heck are you doing?  
MK: Just looking.  
[he sees an axe on a table]  
MK: Jackpot.  
[he grabs it and hears a THUD right behind him]  
MK: Ah!  
[Mephiles had accidentally knocked over a plank of wood]  
MK: Freaking... idiot. Don't do that.  
Mp: Sorry.  
TD: What are you gonna do with an AXE, man?  
[Mecha does not answer]  
[they leave the shed and go up to the house]  
[Mecha knocks on the door]  
MK: Hello? Anybody home? Uh.. our car broke down, and we need some help getting to town!  
[silence]  
Mp: I wonder if anyone's home.  
TD: Of COURSE someone's home; the lights are on in there!  
Mp: Yeah, but only in that one room.  
[Mecha knocks again]  
MK: HEY! I know you're in there! OPEN UP!  
Mp: Hmm...  
[Mephiles wanders off a bit]  
MK: What are you doing?  
Mp: Well, if you want to get inside...  
[Mephiles finds a cellar entrance, and opens it; inside is a small room and a door]  
Mp: ..then there is always a way.  
MK: Nice thinking. C'mon, you two.  
TD: I'm still not even sure why you want to go inside, but okay.  
MK: It's simple. These guys must have a car, and I plan on convincing them to let us use it.  
[Mecha climbs in]  
TD: Eh, fine, wait for me.  
[the Doll climbs in, too]  
[Mephiles hops in; the floor beneath him breaks and he falls down into a dark storage room]  
Mp: Oof!  
TD: Idiot.  
MK: Hey, man! Don't worry! Just get out of there, and we'll.. we'll catch up!  
Mp: Wait!  
MK: And one more thing. You might need this more than I do.  
[Mecha tosses his axe down]  
Mp: Don't leave!  
[they enter the door in front of them]  
Mp: Aw, man.

 

 **(Tale Two)**  
[cut to the cobblestone path.. place, just outside the village]  
[oh, and the chao have flashlights. Forgot to mention that.]  
Shade: Right. Where are we searching first?  
Dark: Perchance we could be searching at yonder entrance, suh?  
Shadow: No. Not the entrance. There is no entrance anymore.  
Dark: Ya sure? We can't even check?  
Red: Something tells me it's best we don't even check.  
Shade: Damn, you two are getting paranoid ALREADY? Halloween only just officially started a few minutes ago!  
[they start moving forward; Red trails behind]  
[oh, one more thing, the sky is currently dark, but not TOO dark; there's still plenty of light]  
[sunset finished little under half an hour ago]  
Red: Interested in the time.  
[not really. Just the lighting. Gotta make this scary. Want to make it scary enough for two years' worth.]  
Red: Right, right.. man, you're really upset about missing Halloween last year.  
[Doesn't matter. I think you should move on. It's not safe to be out in the woods at night... alone.]  
Red: You can't scare me.  
[Red stands in wait for a bit]  
Red: ...uh.. hey, guys, wait for me!  
[Red runs off-screen]

[cut to a new acre of woods, off to the south of the cobblestone path]  
Dark: Captain's Log, 729 AD. We're currently wandering around this strange new world, hoping to find some sign of life.  
Shadow: ..who are you talking to?  
Dark: You! I want you to write this down! This will go in my log.  
Shadow: Wha?  
Shade: Just... just let him talk.  
Dark: We are currently walking around some odd acre of woods, and I want my mommy.  
Red: Pfft, we've just barely started.  
Dark: Shut up! I don't see YOU doing anything heroic.  
Red: Yeah, well that's because I don't HAVE to. I'm Brian, remember? The boring one?  
Shadow: He's got a point there. Dark, you're the one who's supposed to be scaring US. You're Masky.  
Dark: Well.... shut up.  
[they keep walking for a bit]  
[they come across a large, fallen tree preventing further walking]  
Shade: Damn. We can't keep going down here.  
Shadow: What about to the East?  
Dark: That guy told us not to go East.  
Shadow: *sigh* Fine. What about West, then?  
Red: How about we just turn back?  
Shade: No way, and be a wuss? Pfft. We're in this for the night.  
Red: I.. I.. aw. Okay.  
[they start heading to the West, following the fallen tree]  
Shadow: This was a really big tree. It goes on for acres!  
Shade: Yeah, well, something tells me this forest isn't normal.  
Dark: *gulp*  
Red: Fellows, if I may attempt to soothe your nerves?  
Shade: Try it.  
Red: We are on a different planet. Physics, including how big a tree may be, are bound to differ from our accepted norms.  
Dark: That.. that helps.  
Shade: Red, I'd high-five you but I'm holding a camera.  
Red: It's alright. I appreciate it.  
[they reach the next acre of woods, and the fallen tree finally reaches its end]  
Shade: DAMN, that thing was huge. Now we can go south!  
Red: Yes, but why would we WANT to?  
Shadow: Maybe THAT'S why.  
[they look, and to the west is the traveler from before, still facing away, sitting at the top of a tall tree]  
Red: Right, and to the north is the village...  
Shade: Yeah, so let's go this way.  
[they hurry down to the south, trying not to look at the vague traveler at the top of the tree]  
[by the time they head south an acre, they find a small outpost]

Entry #13 (Red: Outpost)  
Scattered on the ground are some binoculars, telescopes, astrology books, and... zoology books, I believe. Upon further  
examination of the zoology books, the creatures depicted range from bizarre to outright delusional. This is most likely due  
to the aforementioned "alien planet norms." These are obviously normal to these people. Still, this outpost is interesting.  
I suppose some villagers or other travelers had come out here to observe the local fauna.

[Red tells the others of his thoughts]  
[Dark turns to look at the traveler]  
Dark: Guys... he's gone.  
[the others look, and yes, the traveler HAS gone]  
Shadow: Creepy.  
Red: He couldn't have gone far, could he?  
Shade: It doesn't matter! Let's move on.  
[they move past the outpost and head west some more]  
[after a while, they hear the distant sound of water, to the south]  
Shade: Water, anyone?  
Red: Water is always good news. I say go for it.  
Shadow: Eh, why not?  
Dark: Fine.  
[they go on to the south, and an acre away is a river]  
[it goes from the west to the east]  
Shadow: What is up there, to the west?  
Red: It looks like miles and miles of boring woods.  
Shadow: And what is down there, in the other direction?  
Red: To the east... looks like the same thing.  
Shade: Eh, I say we head down the river.  
Shadow: Well, you're the only one making decisions so far. Let's do it.  
[they head down the river for a couple of acres]  
[at one point, the river curves and heads north; they still follow it]  
[of course, as it curves, it makes a U-turn and goes back south before finally resuming its eastward course]  
[they keep blindly following it, having no other landmarks to follow]  
[they keep heading east until eventually, the river grows in size and takes up the entire next few acres]  
Shade: Aw, damn. Now what?  
Shadow: ...there! What's that, just by the riverside?  
[just by the riverside is a large raft]  
[Shade looks at the others with a sly grin]  
Red: Oh, no way, you're not planning to...?  
Shade: C'mon. What other choice do we have?  
Shadow: The other choices are turn back, and wander aimlessly through the woods all night.  
Red: .....ahhhhh fine. Fine fine fine.  
Dark: Let's DO IT!  
[they push the raft into the water and climb on]  
[they ride the raft down the river for several acres]  
[eventually, they reach a big stone wall that the river goes into (like a drain) and ahhh I can't explain stuff]  
[basically, the chao have to get off the raft and they do]  
Red: Well, that was a rather uneventful raft ride. Now where are we?  
Shadow: No idea. Hey, what's this?  
[they find a small path heading up a little valley, to the south]  
Shadow: Anybody else feel like heading up this path?  
Shade: I know I do.  
Dark: Rock n' roll!  
Red: Well, majority rules.  
[they head up the path to the south]

Entry #14 (Shadow: Scruple)  
Okay. Okay. I'm a little weirded out now. I swear I just dreamt we were in some dark woods at night. The others say they  
had the same dream. But then again, we're wearing our Halloween costumes, so.. was it really a dream?

But we're.. we're in front of a small town. Like, proper town. In a clearing, too. No trees anywhere. And it's daytime.  
Like... bright, sunny day. The sign at the front of the town reads "Scruple," which I assume is the name of the town.

What the hell just happened?

[cut to the town of Scruple, at daytime (like.. noon); no trees anywhere in sight]  
[our heroes walk into the town, and find it filled with many other chao]  
[the other chao continue on as if our heroes weren't there]  
[the three look at Shade, who looks at them with confusion]  
[Shade stops a passerby]  
Shade: Excuse me, ma'am?  
Chao: Yes? What is it?  
Shade: Um.. where are we?  
Chao: Where are you? Why, you're in Scruple!  
Shadow: But we were just in Sancheria...  
Chao: Sanch..what? Boys, that's just an urban legend. You'd best stop reading those comic books. Haha!  
[the chao walks away]  
[they walk up to an old well]  
Red: Well, THAT'S an old well.  
Otherguy: Heh, sure is! And y'know what's at the bottom of this well? A key.  
Shade: A key? Really?  
Guy: Really. I'll give it to ya.. for a price.  
Shade: Wait, what does the key open?  
Guy: That's the thing-- we have no idea. It's the spooky key of no unlocking!  
Shade: *sigh* Fine, how much?  
Guy: Uh.. got any mepsipax?  
Shade: What?  
Guy: Doesn't matter. Doesn't matter.  
Shade: No, no, we'll get you your mepsipax. Just make sure you're ready to give up that key.  
Guy: Yeah, yeah.. we'll see.  
[they leave the well and look around]  
Red: Okay. What the hell is mepsipax, Shade?  
Shade: Pepsi Max. Hang on, I'm sure we can find it. Hey, dude?  
[Shade pulls over a random person]  
Shade: Which way to the nearest store?  
Dude: Uh.. it's at the other end of the town.  
Shade: Thanks.  
[they head to the east end of the town, and enter a store]  
[Shade buys some Pepsi Max]  
Red: Now where did you get money?  
Shade: Deus ex machina. I had some. So what?  
[they head back to the well]  
Shade: Here's your "mepsipax."  
Guy: That ain't no mepsipax! That there is Pepsi Max.  
Shade: That's what mepsipax IS, dude.  
Guy: It IS? Oh. Well, I'll be damned. Okay, fine.  
[the guy hands Shade an old key]  
Shade: Thanks.  
Guy: Good luck finding out what that's supposed to open! Not even I know!  
[they look around a bit]  
Shade: Hm. What could this possibly open?  
[they find an old building with a lock on the front door]  
Shade: ........ah, it's worth a shot.  
[the key unlocks the old house]  
Shade: Oh. What do you know?  
Red: What good would an old house do?  
Shade: You never know.  
[they look inside and find absolutely nothing of interest]  
Shade: ...you still never know!  
Shadow: Let's look around a bit more. This town seems a little too good to be true.  
[they take a quick look around the town, and find that it is divided into three sections]  
[in the northwest is the front end of the town, where most people live and converse and whatnot]  
[in the northeast is the back end of the town, where most of the shops are and where some people live]  
[in the entire south end is the abandoned section, where only foolish people go-- nobody will explain why, though]  
[our heroes head to the entrance to the abandoned section; a large gate blocks entrance]  
Guard: Hey! You kids shouldn't be wandering around here!  
Shade: Yeah, um.. hello. First of all, I'm twenty-two. Secondly, yeah, why is this section blocked off?  
Guard: Too many lives have been lost back here. You'd best turn back.  
Shadow: Whoa, whoa, whoa. "Lives have been lost?" Care to elaborate?  
Guard: Many years ago, a.. a.. really bad thing happened. Back there. So we gated it up, and nobody's gone back there since.  
Red: That's not very progressive.  
Guard: Hey, this ain't the kind of thing you can evolve through. It's one of those natural selection, adapt or die things.  
Red: Um.. evolution and natural selection aren't mutually exclusive.  
Guard: Whatever! I ain't letting anyone through, especially not little strangers like yourselves.  
Shade: Alright. That's fair. C'mon, guys.  
[Shade leads the others back to the old house]  
[he looks around and starts digging through cabinets and drawers]  
Dark: Whatcha lookin' for, Shade?  
Shade: So far, this whole town has been one big fetch-quest.. like something out of an RPG.  
Red: That's an eloquent way of putting it.  
Shade: So I figured, the best way to get past a gatekeeper is to find written permission.  
[Shade rummages through a drawer and pulls out a small slip of paper]  
Shade: And that's just what I found!  
[cut back to the gate; our heroes return]  
Guard: I see you have come back.  
Shade: Yes, hi. See, I had completely forgotten to mention this before, but.. we were sent.  
Guard: You were sent?  
Shade: Yes. By Her Royal Awesomeness, the lovely Queen of Georg....zerland.  
Guard: Her Awesomeness sent you?! No way.  
[Shade shows the guard the slip of paper, with a signature on it]  
Guard: Her Loveliness, the Queen of Georgzerland... o_o  
[the Guard opens the gate]  
Guard: Well, I have no idea what Her Awesomeness wants you to do back here, but.. it is not my place to object. Go right in.  
Shade: Thanks.  
[they enter]  
[this back end of the town is deserted, with some burnt down buildings and some buildings covered in vines]  
Dark: Shade, I had no idea there WAS a Queen of Georgzerland.  
Shade: Shhh. There isn't.  
Dark: Oh. ...oh! Nice oneMAN.  
Shade: Red, you're observant. Could you observe this place and write it in a log entry?  
Red: Sure.

Entry #15 (Red: The Back End of Town)  
The backside seems completely different than the rest of the town. Everything's dark around here, whether it's scorched by  
some historic fire, or simply shadowed by some taller, eroded building. That's another thing-- EVERYTHING SEEMS ERODED.  
By that, I mean that everything appears as if it has been slowly destroyed by water or wind. Sometimes both. All the sounds  
of crowds and laughter and machines have all vanished completely, as if we've moved far away from the town. In fact, the  
only sound of note is a peculiar hum. A low hum. It sounds like the kind of hum you'd hear from a large supercomputer, or...  
something. I have no idea what the hum of a large supercomputer would sound like, okay? It just sounds... large, yet distant.

We checked out the town a little bit further, and looked around the various downed buildings. There really isn't much to see.  
However, Dark was able to find a small box. A wooden box. Nothing's in it. Upon further exploration, Shadow discovered one  
locked door, and it was the front door to a pretty big building. It looks almost like a factory. Why do I get the feeling  
that Shade's right, and this IS just one big fetch quest?

[cut to back in the northeast section of town; the chao have just left the abandoned section]  
Shade: So we only found that one locked door, and this box?  
Dark: It's a pretty box.  
[they find a little girl crying]  
Shadow: Hey, what's wrong?  
Girl: I.. I'm lost! I can't find my mommy!  
Dark: Oh, no! Here, have this box.  
Girl: *sniff* Wh...what's this supposed to do?  
Dark: Nothing whatsoever. But it's a pretty birch, innit?  
Girl: *sniff* Y..yeah, it IS a pretty box! Gee, thanks, mister!  
Dark: No problem.  
[they walk away]  
Dark: It feels nice to help out little children.  
[a random person bumps into Dark]  
Dark: Ack! Hey, watch where you're going, buddy!  
Red: Whoa, Dark! I think he just handed something to you.  
Dark: He did?  
[Dark takes a look at what he was just given; it is a pineapple]  
Dark: Ooh, yummy!  
Shadow: How the heck did you not notice that he gave that to you?  
Dark: I'm Dark, remember? 8D  
Shadow: ...oh, yeah.  
[they wander around town again, and check out the northwest section]  
Red: Now, realistically, what can we do with a pineapple?  
Shade: We can.. feed the poor, or something.  
[a poor person walks up to them]  
Poor: Please, sir.. I'm so hungry. Do you have any spare food?  
Dark: Hey. Listen. Here's my shirt.  
Shade: DARK!  
Dark: I mean, here's a pineapple. *hands him a pineapple*  
Poor: Thank you!  
[the poor guy walks away]  
Shade: Seriously, dude, you don't even HAVE a shirt. Just that mask.  
Dark: ...HOLY CRAP, MAN, I JUST REMEMBERED SOMETHING.  
[Dark runs off]  
Shadow: D-Dark! Wait for us!  
[the other three run off, following him]  
[he leads them north, down the valley and out of the town]

[cut to by the end of the river at night, in the forest]  
[Dark is running to the north, and the other three are standing around]  
[Dark suddenly stops running]  
Dark: Whoa. Guys, did I just fall asleep?  
Shadow: Better yet, did I?! I'm not even tired!  
Shade: Um.. uh.. whoa. Did WE? Wait, Dark, in the dream, you said you remembered something.  
Dark: Huh? ..oh, right! Up here!  
[Dark leads them to the north of the river]  
[Dark leads them to a mask lying on the ground]  
Dark: I kinda remember seeing this... when we were out on the river.  
Red: What the? It's... a mask?  
[the mask is made to look like Solid Snake]  
[Red picks up the mask, and tries it on]  
Red: ..whoa, everything looks... green.  
Shade: It's freaking NIGHT VISION, oh, that's AWESOME!  
Red: Hang on, guys.. I see something over there, by the river.  
[Red leads them over to the river, and crouches down by the shore]  
Red: Hmm...  
Shade: Well? What'd you see?  
Red: It's... a key!  
[Red picks it up]  
Red: It's an old, rusty one.  
Shadow: Why do I get the feeling that...  
Shade: ..it's for the factory-esque building?  
Red: Should we check it out?  
Shadow: Eh. We need SOMETHING to do.  
Shade: The kid's becoming more like me by the minute.  
Red: Fine! Let's go.  
[they head right back up the valley]

[cut to Scruple, broad daylight, no trees around; the chao are standing around]  
Dark: ....okay, that is REALLY cool.  
Red: Yeah, I'm pretty sure that was NOT just a dream. I'm still wearing the mask. *takes mask off*  
Shade: You still have the key, though, right?  
Red: Uh... *checks* ...yeah!  
Shade: Sweet. Let's go, then.  
[they head through town and to the abandoned section]  
[they check out the factory-esque building, and try unlocking it]  
[they do]

Entry #16 (Red: Inside the Factory)  
Inside the door was, indeed, a factory. There were broken-down conveyor belts and switches and levers... the whole place  
smelled of dusky old dust and smelly old smells. The light humming from before was much more pronounced and evident. We  
moved on into the factory, and the first thing we see is this long, dark corridor leading to nowhere.

Before anyone says anything, we're already up at the entrance to the hall. I look at Shade, who looks back at me with a  
strange expression on his face, as if to say he doesn't know what's going on, but we're gonna find out anyway.

Shadow steps up to the hall, and nobody says a single thing. In fact, we follow him into the hall.

Entry #17 (Shadow: Tenebrosity)  
That was even more surreal a dream than the last. Wait, what? I.. WERE we in that factory? In that town? But, no, I swear I  
was dreaming.. but I get the feeling the other three were, as well. ...wait. Wait wait wait. Let me just.. describe my  
surroundings. Make sure we get this down.

We're in the middle of a large cemetery. The sky is dark.. it seems like half-past eight. Ish. There are clearly some trees  
around us, outside the cemetery.. to the south and west. But to the north.. is.. a gigantic factory. And yet... well..  
the factory seems twisted. Bizarre. Some lights are turned on, and some aren't. I think I see some other buildings in the  
near distance.

A nearby sign reads "Tenebrosity Cemetery."  
"Tenebrosity..." I suppose that's the name of this industrial town.

[the chao look at each other]  
Shade: ...  
Shadow: ...  
Dark: ...  
Red: ...let's set one thing straight. We were NOT just dreaming.  
Shade: ..I have to agree. No matter how much it seems like we were, we weren't.  
Red: Right. We seem to be passing through various... lack for a better term, "realities."  
Shade: I'd say "Light World and Dark World," but we entered in THIS world, the darker one.  
Red: Yes. But either way, the two realities are VERY real. Hence the term "realities."  
Shade: Exactly. So! No running off, and no doing crazy ****. Any questions?  
Dark: I gotta pee!  
Shade: *groan*  
Shadow: I.. I think there's a small industrial town over there. There may be a bathroom there.  
Shade: Fine. Let's check it out.  
[Dark prepares to run]  
Shade: Ap! No running off.  
[they walk through the cemetery, and to the east]

Entry #18 (Red: Tenebrosity Industrial)  
The industrial section of the town is basically.. a backwards L. We entered at the west part, and it turns and goes to the  
north. Up there, though, is the factory. It's seriously a HUGE factory. It is bigger than that.. that village in the woods.  
The closer we get, the darker and more ominous it seems to get. The lights...

Oh, right, right, the town. Yes. It's a relatively small town. The buildings are deserted and quite small. You can clearly  
see the trees behind them.

Speaking of trees, and I'm saying this so the other three will know what I am currently staring at... I can plainly see the  
strange traveler from before, um.. sitting above a tree, facing away from us. Always facing away, isn't he? Ah, and I now  
remember what the village chief said, about steering clear of all trees. He was wise to tell us that. As this place gets  
darker, the trees become more and more indistinguishable. Luckily, we are not in the forest right now. ..where was I?

[rustle]  
[Red darts his head to look at a building nearby; he sees a shadow duck behind it]  
Red: Guys... I don't like this place. I don't feel safe.  
Shade: Ah, where's your sense of adventure? Of DANGER?  
Red: Ohhhh, I sense danger, alright.  
Shade: You'll get used to it.  
Red: But Shade...  
Shade: Ooh, guys, look! A door to the factory!  
Red: Ohhhhhhhhhhh...  
[they head over to the factory door]  
Shade: ...aw, it's LOCKED!  
Shadow: What a surprise. Hey, I wonder if we can get in through that window that's suspiciously close to the ground?  
Red: Ohhhh--wait, how can a window be SUSPICIOUSLY close to the ground? That seems rather normal to me.  
Shadow: Eh, when you take it into context, it seems like it was placed there to let us get in.  
Red: I get what you're saying, but even then, it would be CONVENIENTLY close to the ground, not "suspiciously."  
Shadow: Good point.  
[they head to the window and climb through]

Entry #19 (DUNGEON: Tenebrosity Factory)  
Shadow: Um, yes, hello... this is a slightly different kind of Log Entry. This is a Dungeon Entry. You see, there are some  
pretty crazy places out there, and the Tenebrosity Factory is no exception. It requires some intense concentration on our  
parts, and sometimes we just need to.. focus without really making our actions known, script-wise. Sometimes we even have to  
split up, and in a huge place like this.. that's pretty likely. Of course, by some weird power that probably has something to  
do with the breaking of the fourth wall and meta-writings, we are always able to keep in contact with each other via these  
entries. Now, some of the things written in here may be vague. I'm not sure if that's because we're too busy doing stuff to  
bother writing full, complicated, eloquent descriptions like this, or if it's to do with the fact that this is supposed to be  
a scary script, but either way... you're gonna have to put up with it for a little bit. Sorry!

Red: The room through the window is some kind of office. There's a small desk and a computer.. and.. yeah, it's boring. The  
light is on, though, so I'm wondering if there's anyone around?

Shade: Okay, we're at some sort of huge hallway, connecting all the little offices together. Split up?  
Shadow: It'd help. We don't want to spend too much time here.  
Dark: I'm fine with it!  
Red: I'll.. go with Dark.  
Dark: Alright.

Dark: Lotta empty offices here. Anyone mind if I steal a computer or two?  
Red: Hey, what if people are actually here?  
Dark: ...fine...

Shadow: Empty. Empty. Empty. Empty. Empty. Empty. Empty. Empty. Empty. Empty. Empty.

Red: Dark, put that computer down.  
Dark: Awwww....

Shadow: Empty. Empty. Empty. Empty. Empty. Empty. Empty. Empty. Em--hello! ...oh. Oh, my.  
Red: What? What is it?  
Dark: What'd ya find?  
Shade: Kid! Kiddo! What's up?  
Shadow: Well... I found somebody. Except.. he's dead.  
Shade: Now, when you say "somebody..." chao?  
Shadow: Yeah, he's a chao.  
Red: Are.. are you sure he's dead? You sure he's not just sleeping?  
Shadow: The whole room is covered in blood, Red. Blood-red blood, Red.  
Red: Urk.  
Shade: Alright. So something's happened here. Keep looking, guys. Put your findings on here.

Shadow: The blood's still wet.

Dark: Anybody else feeling kinda weird right now?  
Red: You mean fear?  
Dark: Kinda.  
Red: I'm feeling it.

Shade: Okay, I've reached the end of the corridor. There's a door that presumably leads out into the main factory.  
Shadow: Alright, wait up.  
Shade: I will. Dark, Red, we're meeting up here.  
Red: Gladly.  
Dark: Sure.

Shade: Okay. Let's see what's behind door number seventy.

Dark: Jeeze Louise!  
Shadow: Crap crap crap crap crap crap... oh.. oh my, ahhh ah.. oh..  
Shade: I'm.. I'm..... scared. I am scared.  
Red: Since the others are freaking out, I suppose I had may as well write the description for this place. While I must admit,  
I'm surprised I didn't freak out, as well.. I suppose that's because I AM freaking out, but in different ways. Doesn't  
matter. The description for the main room of the Tenebrosity Factory is as follows.

We stand in a doorway at the southeast bottom floor, staring, eyes wide and mouth agape at the massive room in front of us.  
There are vats filled with either cooking oil, blood, or freaking urine for all I care. Either way, the room smells greatly  
of all three. There are instruments of torture and cooking around the room, including (but not limited to) a plethora of  
meat grinders, a myriad of rotisserie devices, and a large number of assorted doodads that I can only assume are designed to  
murder and mass-produce the main line of food produced in this factory.

The main line of food produced in this factory, by the way, is none other than US. I **** you not, there are piles upon piles  
of rotting chao corpses attached to the rotisserie devices and being prepared to be dropped into the freaking meat grinders,  
and there are multiple conveyor belts covered in what I regret to assume are processed chao meat. What's more, all the lights  
are on in this accursed factory, and there is blood scattered all along the walls, and the floor, and the platforms.. and...  
ugh, man, I can't take it anymore. I want to get out of here. I want to get out.

Shade: Run. Follow close behind me. Follow. Follow. C'mon. C'MON!  
Red: Keep your eyes closed if you have to, ahhh c'mon, don't breathe in too much, Dark!  
Dark: It's hard! It's hard not to! Ohhh, urp, it smells so rotten.  
Shadow: ..crap crap crap crap crap crap crap crap crap crap...

Red: Our dashing across the room only got us so far. There seems to be a large.. wall in front of us. No visible form of  
entry yet. We're going around it, though.. to the northwest corner of the factory.

Shade: DOOR! DOOR! OPEN! OPEN THE DOOR!

Red: The door opened, luckily. ..well, I SAY "luckily." Now I see maybe we WEREN'T so lucky. I don't think the others have  
realized it yet, but the lights are off in this corner of the facility. Although the smells seem to have dissipated.

Dark: Ugh, it's terribly dark in here.  
Shade: It's NOT dark, it's.... oh, who am I kidding? It's pretty damn dark in here.  
Shadow: I'm gonna reach around and see if I can't find any light switches.  
Dark: Heh.... you said "re--"  
Shadow: I found something!

...

Oh. That's not a light switch. But then, what IS it? It's all squishy...  
Shade: Wait, don't we have flashlights?  
Shadow: You and I have our video cameras, and Red has his mask...  
Red: Oh, yes. Hang on, let me put the mask o--OHMSRHKSGFSDKO_g sr  
Shade: I don't like the sound of that. Was it THAT bad?  
Red: Oh... ha, sorry, no, I just thought I saw a HUUUUGE spider, but no. Haha! False alarm.  
Shadow: So what do you see?  
Red: It's... it's a kitchen.  
Shadow: Oh, geez.  
Red: But.. but it's clean! It looks spotless. Uh.. let me look around for a light... ah, found one!

Shade: Huh, you're right, it IS spotless! Guess they kept this place clean.  
Shadow: Wait, Red, what do you mean, "huge spider?"  
Red: It... well... it was nothing. I just...  
Shadow: Like, when you reached for the mask?  
Red: No, after I had put it on. I saw one.. over there, it went around that corner, to the left.  
Dark: Whoa, you could see a spider from all the way over here?  
Red: That's the thing.. it was HUGE. Like, the legs were...  
Shadow: ...I don't like spiders, Shade.  
Shade: I'm sure.. I'm sure he was just.. hallucinating.  
Red: It looked... well... I dunno.  
Shadow: Just to clarify, EXACTLY what did you see?  
Red: Four giant black legs creeping around the corner.  
Shadow: Insect-like?  
Red: Arachnid-like.  
Shadow: Oh, jeez...  
Red: Hey, I'm not a big fan of giant spiders, either.  
Shade: Wait, let's look at this logically. Why would there be a huge bug in this factory? It seems fully operational.  
Red: Yeah, but for one thing, it's an alien planet. Anything can happen. Two, nobody's here. Maybe it ate everyone?  
Shadow: SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP!!!  
Dark: Okay. I'm feeling pretty suicidal. I want to go around the corner.  
Shade: Are you sure, Darko?  
Dark: Yes. Let me.  
Shade: Fine.

Dark: Here goes nothing.

Shadow: There goes the bravest guy I've ever known.  
Shade: Dibs on his guitar.

Dark: ..nothing here.

Red: Dark's right. Around the corner is just a small little utility closet-like place.. oh, and a bathroom!  
Dark: Eh, I don't need the bathroom anymore.  
Red: Okay. There is also a large door leading into whatever that strange wall led to.

Shade: I don't think we have anything else to do. Should we check out that subway?  
Red: Subway?  
Shade: Did I say "subway?" Hah... fear effs up my words sometimes. I meant.. the door.  
Shadow: No way. What if the spider's in there?  
Red: You mean, "what if the giant spider opened, fit through, and closed this door?"  
Shadow: Hey, you said it yourself! It's an alien planet. Anything can happen.  
Shade: Hm, so what'll it be? Wait, let's just check our inventory right now.

-two video cameras (Shade, Shadow)  
-one Solid Snake night-vision mask (Red)  
-one simple Masky mask (Dark)  
-one crowbar (Shade)  
-one gravity gun (Shadow)  
-one pulse rifle (Red)  
-one shotgun (Dark)

Red: Okay, whoa. We've had our old weapons all this time?!  
Shade: Uh.. yeah. I dunno if you guys noticed or not, but I've certainly had my crowbar for a while.  
Red: There are so many times when we really could have used these...  
Shadow: Well, dwell on the past all you want. Just know that we have this stuff now.  
Red: Yes. Good point. Okay, I say we head into the door.

Shade: Uh.. Red? Analysis?  
Red: Right. So apparently, I'm the analysis guy. ..I'm Slippy.

We stand at the west side of this big, sealed-in room. As soon as we entered, the door slammed shut. Immediately, a strong  
scent of blood, gore, and rusty machinery becomes known. I can hear an obvious, loud whirring of machines. Of course, we  
can't see a damn thing 'cause this room, like the kitchen before it, is PITCH BLACK. Let me just don my night-vision mask...

Oh, hell no.

Right, so.. first of all, this room is a giant meat grinder. The floor is covered in chopped meats of all varieties. It's  
hard to get to the floor without hitting one of the thousands of mini grinders scattered around the walls. Then we get to the  
center of the room, where there is a BIG drill-ish device, spinning as fast as possible. No doubt any contact with that would  
render anyone useless for the rest of their life.

Then there's THAT.

Hanging from the ceiling, as I did not entirely expect, is a humongous spider. I mean... oh, jeez. That thing.. is... huge.  
It doesn't know we're here yet, luckily. It seems to have trapped itself, though, behind the drill. There's no way it can--

Okay, I partially expected that.

It saw us, and managed to slip past the drill RUN RUN RUN!!!

Oh crap it has Dark ahfasi0g

DArk

SHOOT IT  
SHOOT IT

Dark: AHFsfisd afjiasd fasf asg asgasgasg asg sjgasdg agh9 gha 9gahs9g asdgs dg fdji0HELP HELP HELP HELP AHH AHHAH  
Red: SHOOT IT!  
Shade: YOU HAVE THE PULSE RIFLE!  
Red: Oh, right.  
I was able to shoot the behemoth, and it dropped Dark.

Shade: Dark!  
Dark: I'm.. I'm okay!

Red: By the way, we are currently on a scaffolding that circles the room.

Shadow: Okay, it has come to my attention that WE CAN'T SEE WHAT IS GOING ON.  
Red: Ack! You're right!  
Shade: Red! We're gonna need you to tell us EVERYTHING that happens.  
Red: Right! Right.  
....  
Shade: Like NOW.  
Red: Oh!

It's.. sitting there, on the wall directly behind Shade, watching us.

Shade: Did it react to the gunfire?  
Dark: Well, it dropped me.  
Shade: Hm. I have an idea. Red, fire at it, then when it comes close, Dark, you shoot it with your shotgun.  
Dark: Okay. I'm gonna need Red to tell me when, though.  
Red: I gotcha.

....

SHOOT!  
Dark: Aiee!

Shade: That was quite the roar it just made. Was that a death roar?  
Shadow: Sounded more like a battle cry...  
Red: ..Shadow! Your gravity gun! I need you to grab one of the grinders scattered along the wall!  
Shadow: But...  
Red: I suggest you do it NOW, before that.. THING comes at us. 'Cause it's doing that right now.  
Shadow: Aaaah!

Red: Right, now fire it.... uh.. to your.. 11 o' clock!  
Shadow: AM or PM?  
Red: It doesn't matter, just FIRE!  
Shadow: Here goes nothing!

Red: Oh, my, that was gruesome.  
Shadow: Did I hit it?  
Red: Well, no. You just missed.  
Shadow: What?  
Red: BUT, you freaked it out, and it fell over and into the meat grinder.  
Shade: So the stuff we just got covered in...  
Red: Don't lick it.  
Dark: So, um... now what?  
Red: .......just one second.  
...  
Okay. Let's get out of this room. I need to take this damn mask off.

Shade: There. We're out of that grinder room. What.. whoa, what have you got there?  
Red: I found it on the scaffolding. It's a piece of paper with a drawing on it.

The drawing is of a circle. The circle has an X drawn through it. It was drawn with heavy strokes.

Shade: Now, I swear I've seen that symbol somewhere before...  
Dark: Yeah, you're right.. it's so familiar!  
Shadow: Guys.. can we please just get out of this damn factory first? Speculate later?  
Shade: Fine by me.

Shadow: Okay okay okay I hate this room I hate this room  
Red: Just close your eyes and stick close tofffffffffffffffffffuuuuuuuuuuuu  
Dark: The lights! The lights!  
Shade: Oh, for the love of...  
The lights just went out.  
Alright, did anyone see anything that might have caused the lights to go out?  
Dark: I might have.  
Shade: What'd you see?  
Dark: ..nah, it's nothing.  
Shade: No, really, what did you see?  
Dark: I kinda maybe saw a man.  
Red: A man? What kind of man?  
Dark: Birchman.  
Red: ..what?  
[Dark shakes his head]  
Dark: Sorry. He.. was... fancy-lookin'. Like.. he was dressed sorta for a wedding, except NOT for a wedding...  
Shadow: Was it a tuxedo, or was it NOT a tuxedo?  
Dark: It wasn't a tuxedo, no.. but it sorta looked kinda like a tuxedo! He had a tie.  
Shade: Ah, that stuff's not important! His face! What about his face, Dark?  
Dark: I..... ah, I didn't catch his face. I just saw him...  
Red: Where was he?  
Dark: Over at the door we were going to.  
Red: ..okay, Shade, may I recommend something? Like.. SERIOUSLY recommend?  
Shade: Name it.  
Red: Can we... NOT go that way?  
Shade: Why not?  
Red: Just trust me, I'm getting REALLY bad vibes.  
Shadow: Oh yeah? Well, I'M getting really bad vibes from staying in this freaking slaughterhouse in the DARK!  
Red: Hang on, let me put my mask on...

ACK.

Shade: You okay, dude? It's a little hard to tell, but I think you went pale.  
Red: It's.. fine. Sorry.

I simply saw that man peeking around the corner... -.-;

Yeah, let's just.. not go that way. Okay? Please. Let's not.  
Shade: Fine! But can you find us any other ways out?  
Red: Uh... hey, what about this front door?  
Shadow: There's a front door?  
Red: Yeah, right here. Let's try it.

  
[cut to outside the Tenebrosity Factory; the chao leave through the front door]  
[they all gasp for fresh air]  
Shadow: Ohhh, we're FINALLY out of that damn place!  
Dark: That felt really bad.  
Red: I KNEW it was a bad idea to go in there.  
Shade: Yeah, but you're the one who saved our lives about a million times.  
Red: Well... let's leave the thanking to when we're out of this whole TOWN.  
[pause]  
Red: Wait.

[cut to the northeast section of Scruple; daytime, busy]  
Red: Whoa. That was a little weird.  
Shadow: Let's never do that again. Please, I'm sick of Halloween; I wanna go home!  
Shade: It'll.. it'll be okay, kid. We're fine. We're alive. I mean, we're surviving, ain't we?  
Dark: Red, what's that you've got there?  
Red: This? ..huh, that's a good question.  
[Red is currently holding a video cassette]  
Red: When did I get THIS?  
Shade: Ooh, finally, a use for the video cameras!  
[Shade takes the cassette and pops it in a camera, then starts it up]

Entry #20 (Shade: The Strange Video Cassette)  
It's of the Tenebrosity Factory... of the freaky main room that we all hate. The camera is stationary, showing a good part  
of the room, but there are tons of blind spots.

Okay, there are plenty of factory workers. They're all chao, and they're firing up the machines. Are they cooking their  
fellow employees, or what? ..oh, wait. They're just cooking, like.. farm animals. ..ah, then some tool comes over and messes  
around with the camera, pointing it at people and showing off... and he puts it back down, but tilted a little to the ri--  
**** WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?! I swear, there was.. there was a MAN. ..there IS a man. Ah, he was JUST off the camera before..  
and.. oh, man, ohhh **** I know him oh **** no way...

..where'd he go?  
He's gone! He disappeared!

.....oh. OH. Ah. Ooh. Urk. That's.. ooh, that doesn't look too.. ooh, it's making me cringe. And they RECORDED all of this?

Entry #21 (Red: What Shade is Trying to Say)  
I can see now that I'm probably the only one who can speak properly under intense fear. So I shall do that.

The video starts off showing a casual day in the factory, where they slaughter cows and such. Then the camera is moved to the  
right to reveal the man that Dark claims to have seen... who, after a minute or so, vanishes. Just as he vanishes, however,  
a grinder tilts at juuust the right angle to hit a random passerby. As the chao is shredded to bits, a collection of smaller  
grinders that were attached to the original all start falling out of place, as well. As some chao try to stop them, other  
grinders and machines catch them, and other chao end up trying to run away but then trip, and... well... yeah, it's not too  
pleasant. The tape ends abruptly as a black spider leg appears at the edge of the camera.

Shadow: That.. tape.. was... FREAKY. Somebody, throw it away. Please.  
Red: I get the feeling we may need this for later, Shadow.  
Shadow: What the hell gives you that feeling?!  
Red: Call it a hunch. C'mon, let's get out of here.  
Shade: Red, you're lightening up fast.  
Red: It's not that. I'm just getting traumatized and want to get through this as fast as possible.  
[they move onward, over to the northwest section of town]  
Shadow: Ugh, guys, just hang on, okay? Let me catch my breath for a bit...  
[Shadow sits under a tree's shade]  
Red: Fine, have your rest.  
Shade: Guys. That man. What the hell?  
Dark: I'm sure I know him...  
Shade: I'm 100% positive that I do, too, but I don't remember from where...  
Red: Now, hang on. I'm not 100% positive that it's the same man you're remembering.  
Shade: Well, what OTHER man could it be?  
Red: I dunno, some Chao World equivalent of him!  
Shade: Hmm, well, no point wondering over it now. Let's get Shadow and get going.  
Red: ...Shadow... wait a minute. SHADOW!  
Shadow: Calm down, I'm just over here!  
Red: Shadow. Get up. NOW.  
Shadow: Oh, what'd I do this time?  
Red: Slowly come over here. DON'T turn around.  
Shadow: Um... okay.  
[he does]  
Red: Now, let's all just.. leave the town. Okay? Let's go.  
[they slowly leave the town; Red keeps his eye behind them]

[cut back to the Sancheria woods; it's about nine o' clock, and our heroes are gathered around the river]  
Red: Huh? Oh, right, right, the woods.. oh, crap.  
[Red looks around frantically]  
Red: Anything? ...no sign. Okay, I think we're safe for now.  
Shadow: Sheesh, Red, calm down! I was just taking a breather.  
Red: It's not that; it's what you rested under that got me...  
Shade: Relax, man! It was just a tree. They're everywhere, in case you couldn't tell.  
Red: Yes, but if you'll remember, there are no trees in Scruple!  
[Shade, Dark, and Shadow start to turn pale]

Entry #22 (Shadow: Checking off the Checklist)  
If we value our lives in any form, we should NOT, under any circumstances,  
\- Follow and/or approach the "other chao." (Okay, we've done rather well in this aspect.)  
\- Go near that aisle of trees. (Went in the other direction. Good.)  
\- Enter any holes in the ground, whether surrounded by bodies, or with a ladder inside. (Haven't seen any of those yet.)  
\- Go in any houses. (Uhhh... oh, jeez.)  
\- Go in ANY houses. (Yeah...)  
\- Go NEAR any houses. (Ack...)  
\- Enter any houses. (We.. ah..)  
\- Go in any houses. (We did not do that one. But.. let's be lenient. We didn't go in any houses here in the forest!)  
Oh, and we must make sure to keep our eyes on the trees. That sounds fairly easy, considering we'll be in a forest.

"Keep our eyes on the trees?" For some reason, that's starting to sound more and more relevant.

Entry #23 (Red: A Close Encounter... the First of Many?)  
I can't believe Shadow was THAT foolish enough to just waltz on over to that.. that "tree." ****. I can't believe I was that  
foolish enough to not realize it sooner! I know now that what we are dealing with is not of Chao World origin. No, the being  
we have encountered, and will no doubt encounter much more frequently tonight, is from the deepest and darkest corners of the  
internet. I.. I swear, it was just an urban legend! A myth! Although, knowing of this DOES make the fact that we are wearing  
the Marble Hornets costumes a little.. funny.

Entry #24 (Shade: From Eight 'til Nine)  
So in this hour, we disembarked from the village and went south. We found a small little outpost, and steered clear of that  
other traveler. We then followed the river down several acres, and found the odd town of Scruple, which seems to be stuck in  
eternal daytime, or another time zone, or something. One fetch quest later, we wound up in the twisted, darker version of  
Scruple, the moonlit industrial town of Tenebrosity, home to the world's largest meat processing factory. We spent a good  
half hour investigating that accursed factory, killing a giant bug and getting out and whatnot. Then, according to Red, we  
just had a close encounter...

..with the Operator.

  
**(Tale Three)**  
[Mephiles picks up the axe]  
[he enters a door in front of him and finds himself in a laundry room; the ground is flooded]  
Mp: Great. Now I'm alone, AND my feet are wet.  
[he looks around]  
Mp: Though I get the feeling only one of those is true.  
[this room has three doors: the one he entered from, one off to the side, and one up a flight of stairs]  
[he heads up the stairs, only for THOSE to break and for him to end up behind the door off to the side]  
Mp: Freakin' old house.  
[he stacks some crates in the hole in the staircase and makes it to the door]  
[..only to find it locked]  
Mp: You have got to be kidding me. NOW what am I supposed to do?  
[he spots an oddly-coloured patch of wall to his right]  
[he whacks at it with his axe, and it falls apart, revealing a bathroom]  
[a man's pair of legs are on the toilet, and his upper body (not attached to the legs) is on the ground]  
Mp: Holy sh--  
[Mephiles holds back his innards]  
Mp: Stay calm. It's just a dead guy. It's like Dreamcatcher.. just without the weasels. Just.. head.. for the door.  
[he goes up to the door]  
[groaaaaaaaaaaan]  
Mp: What was that?  
[he turns and sees the man's upper body crawling towards him]  
Mp: EEEEEEEEEEEK! *whack whack whack* DIE DIE DIE DIE DIE!  
[it dies]  
Mp: Oh man. What the frick was up with THAT?  
[he leaves the bathroom and finds himself in a small corridor; the light is flickering]  
Mp: This place gives me the jibblies--  
[a corpse falls from the ceiling]  
Mp: !!!  
[he creeps around it, then finds an unlocked door]  
[the next room has two doors, including the one he came through; it also has three beds]  
[he walks toward the other door, only to hear a loud THUMP]  
[he turns and sees the first bed on its side]  
[THUMP]  
[the second bed flies upward, then falls back down]  
[THUMP]  
[the third does the same]  
Mp: What in the worl--  
[the lights go out]  
Mp: Okay. I admit. I'm getting kinda anxious now.  
[he feels around for the door, finds it, and opens it]  
[it's another corridor, with lights on but scarce]  
[blood is on some walls]  
[at the end of the corridor is an open door (on the left)]  
[Mephiles peeks inside and sees a living room, complete with TV (showing static)]  
Mp: Seems safe enough.  
[as soon as he sets foot inside, he sees a young woman in a black dress standing in front of him]  
Mp: HOLY ****.  
[she only appears for a second before vanishing]  
Mp: What the.. what the..?  
[he hears another groan, looks to the right, and sees a zombie]  
Mp: What the heck?  
[he kills it]  
Mp: Right. Uh.. let's.. let's look at this room. Carefully.  
[there are four doors- the one he entered, one next to the TV, and two open ones leading to closets]  
[he tries the door next to the TV, only to find it locked]  
Mp: Great. Now what?  
[he sees a couch in front of the TV; on the couch is a pistol]  
Mp: Eh. Why not? *grabs gun*  
[he lies on the couch and stares at the static on the TV]  
Mp: ....this is freaking boring. I hope Mecha and the Doll are having more progress than--  
[an eye flashes onscreen]  
Mp: --I AM, ack! *sits right up*  
[then the TV shows a small corridor, and a door]  
[the young woman in the black dress is seen slowly walking up the corridor to the door]  
[she is shown opening the door, and just standing there]  
[simultaneously, the door next to the TV opens (in such a way that the door, itself, blocks the view of what's in the next room)]  
Mp: O_O ........do I dare?  
[on the TV, the woman remains just standing there]  
[Mephiles slowly gets up, then moves towards the door]  
[he peeks around it, and sees an empty corridor leading to another door]  
Mp: Fr..freaky.  
[he goes up to the next door, then hears the previous door slam shut]  
Mp: Wha?!  
[he hears footsteps approaching him]  
[he quickly opens up the next door, finds ANOTHER small corridor leading to a door, and runs in]  
[the ground collapses (again), leaving him to fall down into ANOTHER corridor, where he opens ANOTHER door]  
Mp: How many times am I gonna fall? I mean, SERIOUSLY?

  
**(Tale Two)**  
[cut to the Sancheria forest, nine o' clock, the camera zooms in on the forest to the north of the chao]  
[it zooms back out to show the chao looking in that direction]  
Dark: ..you guys aren't thinking of actually.. going that way, are you?  
Shade: Well....... what choice do we have?  
Dark: We could go back up the river path.  
[the camera looks up the river path, showing miles and miles of a long river]  
Shade: ..eh, too far. Besides...  
[Shade wipes his face of whatever fear he had earlier, then chuckles]  
Shade: .....we're in this for the adventure.  
Red: But hang on. That patch of woods looks pretty dark.  
Shade: Red, c'mon. It's nine o' clock at night. It's gonna be pretty dark.  
Red: But.. but it seems...  
Shade: Oh, shut up, already.  
[they head to the north an acre, and find things get much darker than they had assumed]  
Shadow: ...hey. Red. Could I use your night-vision mask for a second?  
Red: Sure.  
[Shadow puts on the mask]  
Shadow: Hold up a second, guys. There's some kind of big rock.. and it's got writing on it.  
Shade: What's the writing say?  
Shadow: "Keep an eye on the trees. Stay close to rustling leaves."  
Red: Surely, it got that backwards? You'd think we'd want to steer clear of rustling leaves entirely.  
Shade: Is that all it says?  
Shadow: ......yeah. Wait, no! Somebody's crossed out a drawing of a circle.  
Dark: Freaking vandalmen.  
Red: Shade, are you sure we should keep going north?  
Shade: 'Course I'm sure! Let's go!  
[Shade heads forward; the others follow]

Entry #25 (DUNGEON: Silent Woods)  
Red: As soon as we entered this acre, I got a sinking feeling in my gut. Things got even darker; we could just about make out the trees around us because they're even darker than our surroundings. Immediately, most sounds went silent. No more rustling of the leaves, no more crickets chirping, no more anything. There was just the faint sound of breathing coming from within us. The strange thing is that we couldn't even hear our own footsteps. We had to look closely to find each other, or even hold each others' hands. We could just about hear our voices, so we were lucky in that aspect.  
And just for suspense purposes, we will only be able to know what people in our own acre are saying. So, if I'm an acre away and I say something, only I will  
know what I just said. ..yeah, that's right; an explanation.

Shadow: There's something eerie about this silence, though. It drowns out most of the other sounds.

Red: Shade, really, did we HAVE to go this way?  
Shade: We didn't HAVE to, but where's the fun in just leaving it go unexplored?  
Red: Argh, curse the curiosity of science.

Dark: ..whoa, did anyone else suddenly hear that?  
Red: It sounded like the rustling of leaves.  
Shadow: Really?  
Red: I.. I think so.  
Shadow: Which way was it?  
Red: To the.. um.. West of us.  
Shadow: Shade, can we...?  
Shade: No way! Red made a good point earlier by saying that we should steer CLEAR of rustling leaves.  
Shadow: ..so.. what? Are we going to the East, then?  
Shade: Of course.

Red: The acre we just entered is equally dark. The sound of rustling leaves is a little louder, coming from the way we came.

Shadow: Hey, guys...  
Shade: You seeing what I'm seeing?  
Shadow: That tree, yeah. It's the Landmark tree.  
Red: The Landmark Tree? Hm, let me check back through the logs...

"This is a tall tree. I mean, REALLY tall. It easily towers over most of the other trees. It's also a sorta slim one.  
Looking up at the top, it's got tons of leaves and some branches.. and.. it's a tree.  
But, most distinguishable about it, is that it is a considerably dark tree. Easy to spot from the others."

Hm. The tree we are currently looking at is certainly darker than the ones around us. It's slim, yeah.  
Shadow: So yeah! It's gotta be the Landmark tree.  
Red: Now hold up a minute--  
Shade: Yeah, yeah, shut up. You talk a lot, y'know that?

Dark: Um.. so where do we go now?  
Shade: Well, the leaves are still rustling to the West, so let's go East s'more.

Red: This next acre is equally dark, though I get the feeling it might be a shade darker.  
Shade: Heh.  
Dark: That was cool.  
Red: I can't hear rustling leaves anymore. The sound has been eaten up by the silence.

Shadow: Well, Shade? Where to now?  
Shade: That's a good question, kid. I say we try North for once. Any objections?  
Dark: Birchman. ...no.  
Red: Not really. Let's try it.

My earlier assumption was correct, it seems, as this acre is a shade lighter than the last. Still no audible leaves, though.  
Shade: Okay, I have an idea. Let's keep going North. I'm getting good vibes.  
Shadow: I don't think we have any objections to that, so.. let's do it.

Red: Next acre! Seems even brighter. I can actually hear my own footsteps now. No other sounds, though.

Further still, and the light has returned to its normal level. I can even see into the next acr--  
Shade: WHOA! RED! Man! *pant* Are you CRAZY?!  
Red: Wh..what?  
Shade: Where the heck are you going?!  
Red: Uh.. North, like you said.  
Shadow: *pant* Shade.. Shade said to go north only once. You were.. *pant* ...were going way too far.  
Red: What? But.. but Shade said to keep going North, and you agreed with him!  
Shade: Dude, no, the last thing I said, and I QUOTE from the script, itself... "That's a good question, kid. I say we try North for once. Any objections?"  
Red: No way! The last thing you said, and I quote--  
Shadow: Guys, shut up for a second.

Red: I hear nothing but our own breathing.  
Shade: Yeah, same here.  
Shadow: Four people breathing?  
Red: ....yes. Four people breathing.  
Shadow: You positive?  
Shade: Kid, even I can count. One, two, three, four. Four people breathing.  
Shadow: Right. This brings me to my second point. Dark's not with us.  
Shade: WHAAAT?! Are.. are you sure?! DARK?! DARK!?  
Shadow: I last saw him when we chased after Red.  
Red: That was, what, two acres ago?  
Shade: Oh.... c'mon, guys. There's no telling what'll happen to him out here on his own.

Red: We've only gone back one acre, and yet already the darkness and silence have returned to full throttle.

Shade: DARK?! DAAARK! SPEAK TO ME, BUDDY! Ack! What was that?!  
Red: Sounded like a twig being stepped on.  
Shade: It's gotta be him. Dark!  
Shadow: Shade, wait up!

Red: I think we are now in the acre to the west of.. the one we were just in. In which we were just. Still dark. Still strangely quiet.

Shade: Any sign of him? DARK?!  
Red: Holy shrimp!  
Shade: What?  
Red: I.. thought I saw Dark.  
Shade: WHAT?! WHERE?!  
Red: I mean.. it was just his mask. I saw it move over there.  
Shadow: That's South of here.  
Shade: I'M COMING, BUDDY!  
Shadow: Wait for us!

Dark, where are you? AH! There you are!

Red: *pant* We're.. we're in the acre South of the one we were in. Shade ran off without us. This acre.. huh. It's odd. It's foggy.  
Shadow: Yeah, none of the acres have been foggy before.  
Red: We, uh.. we think Shade ran off to the West.

Shade: Dark! Please! It's me, Shade! Where are you going..?

Red: This acre looks the same as the previous-- wait, SHADE! STOP RUNNING FOR A SECOND!  
Shadow: It's no use.  
Red: Dammit!  
Shadow: He's really upset over losing Dark.  
Red: Of course. Dark's his elder, not to mention his best friend. He feels.. responsible for him.  
Shadow: I was kinda expecting him to feel responsible for ME, too.  
Red: He used to, though I imagine he probably thinks you're just about ready to survive on your own.  
Shadow: Hm.  
Red: Over here to the North, I think I hear Shade.

Shade: DARK, C'MON! WAIT UP! C'MON, I DON'T WANT TO BE TWO ACRES AHEAD OF THEM! .....OHHHH ALRIGHT! JUST WAAAIT!

DARK! DARK! DAAAAAARK! *pant* Dark! ...Dark..... Dark..  
All that running.. wore me out. I need to rest.....  
Hey, a Landmark Tree...... the other two.. will be able to.. find me....  
*pant* But.. but.. Dark, man.... Dark.. Dark.. Dark...... Dark...

Red: We're now an acre to the North. Still foggy, still tons of trees.

Shadow: Red, did you hear that?  
Red: Leaves...  
Shadow: They were to the South.  
Red: But.. but Shade ran to the North.  
Shadow: Let's go to the North, then.  
Red: I dunno.. I mean, I'm still not certain that the sign outside was incorrect.

Shade: Dark............ Dark................ Dark........  
(....................................dark)  
Shade: Huh?  
I look up and see nobody around. Weird. It sounded just like my voice, only way deeper.  
(Huh?)  
Shade: *gasp*  
I look directly up, and I see a white head facing down from the top of a..... a... tree?  
N-no.. no.. I've got to run!

Red: We still have no proper evidence that the sign was incorrect.  
Shade: .......aaaaaaaaaaaAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  
Red: SHADE SHADE STOP  
POW  
Red: Ow.  
Shade: DUDE DUDE RUN RUN RUN RUN RUN  
Shadow: What's wrong?  
Shade: RUN RUN RUN C'MON  
Red: Ah, Shade, let go of us--  
Shade: RUN!!!

Red: We're in the acre to the south now. I can hear leaves rustling to our east, which would be to the West.  
Shadow: Shade! Maybe we should try going towards the leaves?  
Shade: FINE FINE FINE RUN RUN RUN

Red: Acre to the West now, uh.. the leaves are rustling to the South.  
Shadow: But... to the South of here is where the Silent Woods stop.  
Red: Well, it's where the leaves are rusting.  
Shade: DAMMIT, just run!

Red: We are an acre to the South. We're.. still in the Silent Woods.  
Shadow: Impossible.  
Red: But we are. And it's getting rather cold.  
Shadow: How are we STILL in the Silent Woods?  
Red: I don't know!

Shade: Okay.. okay.. I think we've put enough distance between us and it.  
Red: Oh, yes. Shade, what were you running from?  
Shade: Op.. the Op... the Operator.  
Shadow: The Operator?  
Red: Wait, Shade, that name sounds familiar.  
Shade: It's the euphemism for the.. *shudder* ..the...  
(Operator?)  
Shade: No, that's the euphemism, itself. ....oh, jeez. Guys, quick, look at the trees! Look at them!

Red: The trees in this acre are kinda hard to see, but.. I think some of them are darker than others.  
Shade: Look at the darker ones! Closely!  
Red: Uh.. the darker ones look like Landmark trees, actually.  
Shade: Count the branches on them!  
Red: They ALL have branches.  
Shade: Is there a tree that has them only towards the top?  
Red: ..yeah, one.  
Shade: Okay. Which direction is it from us?  
Red: Um... East?  
Shade: Kay, then. Let's go West. Calmly. (West?)

Red: Brrr, it keeps getting colder and colder. Other than that, this acre looks roughly the same.  
Shadow: I hear rustling leaves.  
Shade: Which way (way?) are they?  
Red: ...  
Shadow: ...  
Shade: ..quickly. Leaves.  
Red: I.. I hear them to the South.  
Shade: South. Let's go. (South?)

Red: As soon as we set foot in this acre, the sound of rustling leaves was louder than ever. It's clearly to the North.  
Shadow: Did we.. did we go the wrong way?  
Shade: I'm not going back there(there?)! ..okay, let's go.

[cut to--]  
Red: ...no way.  
Shade: This is unbelievable.  
Shadow: I'm.. I'm not even gonna question it at this point.  
Shade: Red, jot down what we're seeing, please.  
Red: Gotcha.

Entry #26 (Red: What We're Seeing)  
We see a pathway with trees on either side. All the trees are black, tall, and slim. It leads to the East and West. Behind us is the Silent Wood.  
I'd say the most shocking sight is on the other side of the pathway-- a gigantic, multi-acre mansion. Estate? I don't know what you'd call it. Oddly enough,  
there are no windows on the side we're facing.

What we DON'T see, however, is our friend, Dark.

Shade: Where.. where the heck is Dark?  
Shadow: Do you think he's still in the...?  
Red: I don't think we should think about that too much  
Shade: But... but... (..........Dark?)  
Red: Oh, geez. Which... what... where? (Where?) It sounds like it's coming from right next to us!  
[the chao look around for the strange voice]  
Shade: Look at the trees! The trees!  
Shadow: They all look the same!  
Shade: ****. Then just keep running!  
Shadow: Okay. Which way?  
Shade: ...uh... EAST!  
[the chao run to the East]  
[the pathway continues for a few acres]  
[the chao keep running]

[suddenly, they spot a tall tree growing in the middle of the pathway]  
Shadow: *gasp* That tree...  
/////////////////////  
(Tale One)  
There. That's it. I'm done. If you wanna call me crazy and lock me up, go right ahead.  
[".....you said you turned in that shack. What did you see?"]  
Do you really wanna know, doc?  
["Yes. I do."]  
Alright.  
[subject takes a deep breath]

We heard the deep voice say "Hello?" and I turned.. and the closet door was wide open.  
["I thought so. What was in it?"]  
You'll never believe me.  
["Try it."]  
Well, I saw...  
/////////////////////  
[a tree.. whose trunk has no bottom; the trunk goes into the ground like a thin pole]  
Red: That's no trunk.  
Shadow: That's a pair of legs.

Entry #27 (Shade: The Operator)  
The Operator stands there in all his dark majesty, staring down at us. Leering. Watching.  
His legs stand perfectly still, directly touching each other.. a black trunk with no bottom.  
His two arms rest at his sides, out of sight. Instead, we only see his branches, extending out of him like legs of a spider.  
The branches keep extending... it is only a matter of time before we get caught by them.  
His head.. a small, white oval.. is as pale as the moon. It is also as featureless as the moon. Not a facial feature in sight.  
Those branches...  
His clothing is businesslike and formal.. after all, he is not to be taken lightly.  
His branches.. reaching down...  
I feel them grab me before my eyes can even see it happen.

[Red has grabbed Shade; he and Shadow run off]

  
Entry #28 (Dark: Cavern part one)  
It's dark. It's cold. It's damp. I'm scared. I'm cold. I'm alone.  
Where am I? I'm reaching around... I find a plank of birch.  
...wait, no. I just dropped it and lost it.  
What else is in here? ..the walls are rock. It's probably a cave.  
I'll feel around the walls.. see if I can find an opening.  
WAAAAAAAAH

OW. That HURT. I fell. It felt like a long drop. Now it's a little warmer.. but still dark.  
My eyes are starting to adjust, though I can't see much. Just.. walls. This looks like a narrow cave.. like.. a hallway.  
There's a crossroad here. I could go left, or forward. I want to go forward, so.. I'll go that way.  
It's getting brighter as I walk this way.  
Wow, the hall led to a big room. I.. I can see light coming from a hole in the ceiling. And I think there's a ladder there.. so... I'll go up.

[cut to up the ladder; it is a small cave room; a couple of torches are on the walls]  
[a freaky, red chao is in the room, sitting by the wall; the light from the torches is reflecting off of him]  
?: What the? Who are you?  
Dark: Um.. I'm.. Dark.  
?: Oh. I'm Amphis. What are you doing down here?  
Dark: I, uh.. um.. I don't know. I was in the forest.. then I just...  
Amfy: The forest? You don't mean.. the Silent Wood?  
Dark: The quiet place, yeah. Shade and the others deserted me, and--  
Amfy: 'Shade?'  
Dark: Yes, Shade. The old main protank..Onnett.  
Amfy: The old protagonist, you say? ...who else?  
Dark: Uh.. there was Red.. and the birchman.. and.. the new guy. Shady? Shadoo? Shadoe?  
Amfy: Shadow?  
Dark: Yeah! Yeah, that's it!  
Amfy: Hmmm... Shadow.. I see. In the Silent Wood?  
Dark: Yes.. but I'm sure they're out by now. They're smart.  
Amfy: I see. By the way, Dark, was it?  
Dark: Yeppers?  
Amfy: What day is it?  
Dark: Rocktober the 31st, dude. Helloween.  
Amfy: Halloween, you say?  
Dark: And so?  
Amfy: Hrm.  
[Dark looks at Amphis' freaky redness]  
Dark: Man, why do you look so freaky?  
Amfy: Freaky? How so?  
Dark: Like.. you're all.. red! And.. freaky!  
Amfy: Oh, hmph. Typical. I get stuck with the dumb one.  
Dark: What?  
Amfy: Nothing! You see, dummy, I look like this 'cause I'm a double-power chao.  
Dark: A double-colony-what now?  
Amfy: *sigh* A.. a Power/power chao.  
Dark: Are you a Dark chao or a dumb chao?  
Amfy: You're one to talk.  
Dark: Huh?  
Amfy: I'm a neutral chao. Not from around here. ...as neither are you.  
Dark: How did you know?!  
Amfy: There's something about you. Something.. stupid.  
Dark: That's what my man always says.  
Amfy: Your 'man?'  
Dark: Did I say that? Sorry. Meant mom. Words are close, y'know?  
Amfy: You want to get out of here, don't you?  
Dark: Oh, most certainly, sir!  
Amfy: Right, then. You need to go into the room to the north of here.  
Dark: What's in there?  
Amfy: Come. I'll show you.

Entry #29 (Dark: Cavern part two)  
The Amphy guy led me into some big chamber-ish room. He then told me to check my inventory or whatever.

-one simple Masky mask (Dark)  
-one assault rifle (Amphis)  
-one plank of birch (Dark)  
-one torch (Amphis)

And, uh.. here we are. A big room. Nothing's in here.  
WHOA WHOA WHAT WHAT  
"Shut your mouth, dummy."  
Whoa, wha.. he threw his torch to the other end of the room.  
"There is something in this room. It's attracted to the light."

I look.  
It's horrible.  
It's.. it's..  
I'm not sure, really.

"There's a door. Back where you came. A locked door. I had the key.. then I came in here. That ate it."  
Amphy seemed kinda scared when he said that. I get the feeling he doesn't even know what the thing is, himself.  
"It's.. it's a goblin. And it's come from Hell."  
I ask him how we're supposed to get the key back.  
He doesn't answer. He just looks at the goblin.  
I look again.

It is purple.  
It has three eyes on its back.  
It is bigger than us, but smaller than a large dog.  
It has three legs. Two in the front, one behind.  
The eyes.. the three on its back.. two of them look like insect eyes. The middle one looks like a human eye.  
Then it turns around. >.<  
Its front is all.. green. Dark green. But it's so dark.. it doesn't look like a colour at all, but I just want to SAY it's green.  
It has two eyes on the front.  
Two.  
Th.. I'm sorry. They're.. chao eyes. Sweet, innocent eyes.  
No nose, it looks like..  
The mouth is.... uh.. I don't know. It looks like a tube. I THINK that's its mouth.

Then I felt something touch me, and I almost screamed.  
It was Amphyman's gun.  
He was handing it to me.  
No, no, I can't. I can't.  
"You're gonna have to. For the key."  
But why me?

...oh.

He's gone.

I pick up the rifle.  
But no! I can't!  
I point the rifle at the creature.  
C'mon, this is crazy! I can't!  
I take the safety off.  
What the heck am I doing? I can't shoot that thing!  
I whistle, attracting the creature's attention.  
Oh, it's gonna happen.. stop paying attention. Zone out. C'mon.  
It mutters a low scream that shakes the cave.  
Zone out! ZONE OUT! I don't want to see this!  
I wait for it to charge at me.  
Zone  
BANG  
out. Please.

Huh. I.. I did it. But wait, he said that thing ate the key. Does that mean I'm gonna have to..?  
Oh. Oh, please, no.

I step up to the dead body.  
Please.  
I shove my gun into the body, creating a hole.  
This is disgusting.  
I then shove my arm into the body, digging around.  
Beauty and the Beast Unit. C'mon. Just think about the Beauty and the Beast Unit.  
My hand touches something squishy. Wet. Warm.  
Beauty and the Beast Unit!  
My hand then feels a long tube of intestines.  
Beauty, Beauty, Beauty...  
I shove my arm in deeper, going past the intestines.  
Beauty and the birch Unit.  
My arm hits another organ, which frees some trapped air.  
BEAUTY AND THE BEAST UNIT.  
The freed air gusts out of the body and out into the cave.  
LAUGHING OCTOPUS.  
My hand feels something hard and small.  
RAGIN--is that it? C'mon, c'mon!  
I rip the object out. It is a small bone. I chuck it aside, and resume fishing.  
RAGING RAVEN.  
My hand brushes past some more organs, big and small.  
CRYING WOLF.  
Then I feel a metal-esque object.  
Get it.  
I grab it.  
C'MAN.  
I pull, but to no avail. It is tangled up amid intestines.  
SCREAMING...  
I grab it once more.  
MANTIS!  
I rip it out, and fall backwards as I pull the key free from within.

[cut to the previous room; Dark enters into the torchlight with key in hand]  
[Amphis does not appear to be here]  
Dark: ...  
[he goes down the ladder and to the West, back to the narrow corridor]  
[this time, he brings a torch with him]

[he reaches the crossroad, then goes down the other direction to the right]

[he reaches another fork-- left, right, or back]  
[he takes a few steps down to the left]

Entry #30  
He walks.  
I watch.  
Wrong way.  
I laugh.

[Dark stops-- he hears deep laughter coming from the hall in front of him]

He stops.  
I watch.  
He turns.  
Good.

[Dark then walks down the other hall]

Entry #31 (Dark: Cavern part three)  
I keep walking down the hall. It's a long hall, actually.  
ACK  
WHOA  
WHAT  
WHOA  
I'm underwater!  
But!  
How?!  
I was just walking a few seconds ago! Now I'm SWIMMING!  
ACK!  
Ah! I see light up above!  
SWIM SWIM SWIM

Air! Air! Ohhh, MAN. So much better. And LAND! Ah! I can get outta this now.  
..this room is pretty big. Much lighter, too. Torches all along the walls.  
Oh! I see a ladder over there. I think I'll climb up and see where it goes.

  
Entry #32 (Red: Deja Vu)  
We're in the next acre now. Shade seems a little dazed, but he's running now. Shadow is just following us, keeping an eye out for our stranger.  
Shadow suddenly stops running. I stop, as well. I think I see why he did. Shade is confused. He asks why we stopped.  
"We've been here before."  
This acre.. we have definitely been here before. In fact, I think I know what we'll run into if we keep going to the East.

We're an acre to the East, and there is a Landmark Tree. Just a Landmark Tree. Leaves at the top. Not a creature. It confirms my suspicions.  
"Hello?"  
...was that him? No, it was way too high to be him. Sounded like..  
..East of here.

The next acre to the East.. oh! THIS acre! There should be a hole in the ground right.. ah, yes! ..oh. Dark's here.  
He has logs. We all read them, and he reads ours. I then tell the others where we are, and we go West..

..then South.

Here it is. The village.

[it is between 9:30 and 10:00 PM]  
[the chao check out the chief's hut]  
[it appears to be empty]  
Red: Chief? Are you here?  
[no answer]  
Shade: ...hang on.. there should be a notebook in here. One the chief wouldn't let me look at.  
Shadow: You want to peek into it now that he's gone?  
Shade: Yes. I do.  
[Shadow finds a notebook labelled "Forest Off-Limits"]  
Shadow: Is this the one?  
Shade: Yeah!  
[they gather around Shadow, who opens the notebook]

Entry #33 (Shadow: Forest Off-Limits)  
Avoid the subway. Do not go down the hall. Keep your eyes on the trees.  
I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see them. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. I did see him. 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Sees me. Sees me. Sees me. Sees me. Sees me. Sees me. Sees me. Sees me. Sees me. Sees me. Sees me. Sees me. Sees me. Sees me. Sees me. Sees me. Sees me. Sees me. Sees me. Sees me. Sees me. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Seize you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Seize you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Seize you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Seize you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. Sees you. See you.  
Avoid the subway.

[Shadow closes the book]  
Shade: Wait, what was on the next page?  
Shadow: More writing.  
Shade: Yeah, but what did it say?  
Shadow: Does it matter?  
Chief: Of course it matters.  
[the chao jump; the village chief is standing at the doorway]  
Shade: Chief! Ah.. sorry. We just happened to find our way back..  
Chief: I noticed. What is written on that next page matters; show them, Shadow.  
Shadow: But.. but... aaargh.

Entry #34 (Shadow: The Next Page)  
On the page is a drawing of the Operator.. branches protruding out of him.  
           o  
\------|------  
\------|------  
\------|------  
           |  
           |  
           |  
           | SEES  
           | ME  
           |  
           |  
At the bottom of the page is a circle with an X through it.  
On the back of the page, it simply says "At the tower."

  
Dark: There's a tower now?  
Shade: I think the bigger question would be.. why is a picture from Marble Hornets here in Sancheria?  
Chief: I don't think the "whys" matter as much as the "whats," Shade.  
Red: The "whats.."  
Chief: The important part is, WHAT are you guys trying to do now?  
Shadow: Hey, yeah, that IS a good question. We only went out to explore, and we wound up finding our way back.  
Dark: And I got lost.  
Shadow: Something tells me we've seen all there is to see, Shade.  
Shade: ......but wait. We HAVEN'T seen all there is to see. Just take a look at, uh.. Entry 9!  
Shadow: *flips through* ..the list of things not to do?  
Shade: Yeah. There's still a hole surrounded by bodies somewhere out there, plus we haven't gone down that aisle of trees yet.  
Chief: ....*facepalm*  
Red: Uh.. Shade? I'm pretty sure the list is of things NOT to do?  
Shade: Huh? Oh, right. Fine, so we won't have to go down the aisle. But the other hole!  
Chief: Listen to your friends. I told you to stay away from those places for a reason.  
Shade: Relax! We wouldn't actually go IN the hole. I'm saying that there must be some section of the woods we have yet to traverse.  
Dark: Come to think of it... there are a LOT of places we haven't gone yet.  
Chief: Oh come on, not you, too.  
Dark: But there are! Those caves I was lost in.. I still have no idea where that Amphibious guy went.  
Red: What about that key you got?  
Dark: ..oh yeah! I DO still have a key, don't I?  
Red: I hate to admit it, Chief, but Shade's right.  
Chief: FINE, so you still have places you haven't gone. Why in the world would you even WANT to go back out there?  
Shade: Well--  
Chief: I know you were followed. But he never comes in the village. I have no idea why, but it's true.  
Dark: HE'S A BIRCHMAN.  
Chief: ..wait, what?  
Dark: HE'S A BIRCHMAN.  
Shade: Dark, wh..what?  
Dark: HE'S A BIRCHMAN.  
Shadow: The ****'s a birchman?  
Dark: HE'S A BIRCHMAN.  
Red: Dark? ..you okay?  
Dark: HE'S A BIRCHMAN.  
[Dark faints]  
Shade: D..Dark?  
Chief: Birchman. Things just ain't making sense.  
Shade: What.. but... Dark...  
Chief: He couldn't have been talking about him, no way. Our friend out there is not a birchman.  
Shade: Wh..what?  
Red: What the heck is a birchman?  
[the Chief turns away and puts his face into his hands]  
Chief: Argh...  
[he takes a deep breath]  
Chief: ..tree people.  
Shade: You're kidding.  
Shadow: How.. why didn't we see them?  
Chief: That's the thing. You did.  
Shadow: But.. what? You'd think we'd notice a tree person.  
[the Chief turns and looks at Shadow impatiently]  
Chief: Oh, really? You think you'd notice a tree person in a forest full of trees?  
[Shadow falls silent]  
Chief: You kids had better just stay here for the rest of the night, do you hear me? It's NOT safe out there.  
Shade: But the exploration--  
Chief: Exploration?! You want to go explore out there? *sigh* ....fine. Let's go explore out there.  
Red: Wh..what?  
Chief: C'mon! And don't worry about your friend. He's fine in here.  
[the chief leads Shade, Red, and Shadow out of the hut and out of the village]

[they go to the pathway to the East of the village; the Chief leads them further East]  
Shade: What's over here?  
Chief: You'll see.

[the next acre looks normal, though the chao are now more attentive about the surrounding trees]  
Red: Um.. Chief? How does one spot a birchman?  
Chief: If the tree is moving, or jumping, or talking, or.. I dunno, doing anything a NORMAL tree would find it difficult to do, then chances are, you got yourself a birchman.  
Red: ..right. Of course.  
Shade: So, uh.. where we goin'?  
Chief: Once again, kid.. you'll see.  
[they continue going East]

Chief: Hey. Red, was it? I take it you're the descriptive one.  
Red: Want me to write a log?  
Chief: Go for it.

Log Entry #35 (Red: What the Chief's Showing Us)  
This acre seems rather normal. The trees around us are all stationary. However, while the sky is the normal brightness, you can easily see what's in the  
next acre-- the Silent Woods. After all, it's very difficult to see further than this acre.  
Scattered on the ground are piles of leaves. They seem artificially-gathered, and some even seem slightly darker than others.

The Chief leads us to a hole in the ground. He tells us to think for a minute. "Think back," he says. Then he watches us.  
'Think back,' huh? Thinking back... to... ..oh.... OH.  
Shade gets it pretty quickly, too.  
Shadow is the last to get it, but the first to ask.  
"Where are the bodies, then?"

..oh, wait a minute. The bodies. The... oh, man. The piles. "The.. the piles of leaves!" I say.  
The Chief chuckles, then says "Good guess. But no."  
"Then.. then what? Where ARE the bodies?"  
Shade then grabs my head and turns it to look at the thing behind me.

.....you have got to be kidding me.

"I told you to pay close attention to the trees, after all."  
"But that CAN'T be.. I mean.. you mentioned the hole with the... that would imply you thought we'd know..."  
"I wasn't thinking when I mentioned the hole before. I forgot you guys were new around here."  
"But.. how.. what.."  
"This is a godforsaken forest, Red. As I said, the 'whys' don't matter. It's the 'whats'.

The Chief started moving back West. Then he turned to us and said,  
"My point is simple. You can explore if you want. But don't come crying to me if you end up.. like these guys.  
If you don't want to explore anymore, you can come back to the village. Your friend will be there, too."  
And with that, he was gone.

I looked at Shade, who looked at Shadow, who looked back at him, who then turned to look at me.  
Shadow suggested we turn back.  
Shade, unexpectedly, agreed.  
We then went back.

Log Entry #36 (Shadow: The Checklist Gets Relevant)  
If we value our lives in any form, we should NOT, under any circumstances,  
\- Follow and/or approach the "other chao." (I actually don't think we've seen him for a while. What happened to him?)  
\- Go near that aisle of trees. (We're still doing well in that regard.)  
\- Enter any holes in the ground, whether surrounded by bodies, or with a ladder inside. (Well, Dark EXITED one, and we went close to the other one.)  
\- Go in any houses. (Not this time!)  
\- Go in ANY houses. (Hahaha!)  
\- Go NEAR any houses. (Yeah, we didn't go NEAR any. ..actually, we DID, didn't we? That humongous estate north of the Silent Woods...)  
\- Enter any houses. (Bam.)  
\- Go in any houses. (Well, I mean, we did that in Scruple. And I guess we entered the Chief's hut, but.. that's not a house.)  
Oh, and we must make sure to keep our eyes on the trees. That sounds fairly easy, considering we'll be in a forest.

"Keep our eyes on the trees." That makes perfect sense now.

Log Entry #37 (Red: Loose Ends)  
So.. I am pretty sure we've nearly explored the whole forest. We have seen just about all there is to see, and encountered more than enough threats for one  
night. The question is, have we encountered enough threats for a Halloween? ...no. The question is.. enough for TWO Halloweens, isn't it? Gah, DJay missed  
ONE year due to being busy.. and now he's the opposite of busy and wants to make up for it, doesn't he? I'm afraid he might end up making up for it with our  
lives eventually. Good Apollo, I'm getting out of this damn forest. I am.

But, though we have encountered so many threats, and explored many a setting.. what else is there? I guess I should make my own little checklist.  
\- Birchmen. What are they, REALLY? Are they REALLY the dead travelers, back for some kind of vengance? And what can they do?  
\- Dark said, and I quote, "HE'S A BIRCHMAN." He said it more than once, too. The Chief says it's not the Operator, so.. who?  
\- For that matter, Dark has been acting strange lately. Why?  
\- Where DID that Amphis fellow, mentioned in Dark's logs, go?  
\- What is down that other path in the underground catacombs?  
\- What is inside that hole? The one with all the bodies?  
\- What about that large estate?  
\- The Operator. Something's not right. It seems like he's just tacked on to all of this... but I'm sure he plays a much bigger part.  
\- The village Chief. I'm sorry, but really. I'm curious about him. Who is he?  
\- HOW THE HELL DO WE GET OUT OF HERE?!

Log Entry #38 (Shade: Birchmen?)  
Something strange is going on. Definitely. Metaliterately speaking, we just found out about the alleged "main bad guy" at least halfway into the story.  
It's not like DJay to do that. At least, not anymore. And we've been in these woods for.. what, two hours now? I think we would have noticed a moving tree.  
The only 'tree' that did anything turned out to be the Operator. Granted, Dark is the one who brought up these "birchmen.." and I AM willing to trust him.  
I know I'm worried about him.

..thinking back.. I'm sure I've heard of our mystery baddies somewhere before. I get the feeling I've heard it so many times.. tonight.

  
**(Tale Three)**  
[cut back to Mephiles in the house]  
[in the next room is the young woman sitting on the ground next to a corridor]  
Mp: ..h..hello?  
[she gets up and runs to the left, down the corridor and out of sight]  
Mp: Hey! Wait for me, please!  
[around the corner, he sees the corridor lead down to a wall, and nothing but]  
Mp: W..what?  
[the woman appears for a split second down the corridor, then the walls start shaking; wall panels fall off]  
Mp: ..wh..  
[the woman appears directly in front of him, then disappears]  
[suddenly, there is a door at the other end of the corridor, as well as two zombies]  
[he kills them, then enters the next room]  
Mp: Oh, my goodness.  
[in the next room is the young woman.. she has hung herself]  
Mp: That.. but..  
[he looks away, then looks back to see just an empty room]  
[he heads toward the door at the other end of the room]  
[sniffle]  
Mp: ..?  
[he turns and sees the woman standing in the middle of the room, looking at him]  
Mp: Whoa!  
[she vanishes]  
[the door behind him unlocks]  
Mp: Wh..  
[the next room is another corridor with 3 doors-- the one he came through, one on the left, and one on the right]  
[also zombies]  
[they die]  
[Mephiles spots a shotgun case in the middle of the room]  
Mp: Oh? Shotgun. Sounds good.  
[he breaks the glass and grabs the shotgun]  
Mp: Hell yeah, man. Now I can finally do som--  
CRASHYEAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH  
[the door on the left has smashed open by Mecha Knuckles]  
Mp: HOLY ****!!!  
MK: Bahahahahaha! You're WAY too on-edge, man!  
Mp: D-don't DO that, Mecha! Where's the Tails Doll?  
MK: He's gone upstairs to check if there's anyone up there. YOU find anyone yet?  
Mp: ...no, not yet. But this is a really freaky place, man. I'm not too fond of the idea of sticking around for too long.  
MK: Hey, don't worry 'bout it. I'm pretty sure this place is devoid of any life. I was gonna just go get the Doll and find you, then we'd leave.  
Mp: Alright. Yeah. I like that plan.  
MK: There ya go. C'mon, let's find our way upstairs.  
[they go through the door to the right and find a hall that has been boarded up]  
MK: Well! Guess I'll start bashing through th  
BASH TEAUAASHFAAAAAARRRRRRRR  
[a bizarre grey deformed zombie smashes through the barricade, screaming]  
MK: HOLY CRAP HOLY CRAP HOLY CRAP  
[PUNT!]  
[the zombie flies away and dies]  
MK: ....there. Nothing to worry about.  
Mp: But what WAS--  
MK: Shhhh. Nothing to worry about. Here. Let's try this door.  
[they try the door on the right of the hallway; it's locked]  
MK: Pfft. I bet all this time, you've been going AROUND these doors.  
Mp: Well, um.. yeah.  
[Mecha breaks the door down]  
MK: Scrub.  
[they find a staircase and head up]  
[the next room is a nursery, complete with rocking horse and toys, and a big vanity mirror]  
[the rocking horse begins rocking by itself]  
Mp: ..eah.  
MK: Tsk, it's just a nursery, man. Nothing's gonna hurt you.  
[Mecha opens the next door]  
[SMASH]  
MK: What was that?  
Mp: I.. I.. I.. I don't know!  
MK: Aw, man. It.. it don't matter none. Let's keep going.  
[they kill a zombie in the next hall, then find themselves in a sitting room, complete with fireplace]  
[they see the woman from before standing in front of the fireplace]  
[they look again-- she's gone]  
MK: ......****ing.. house is playing tricks on us. Yeah. Let's.. let's keep on.  
[the next corridor is split up by a giant hole in the ground]  
[Mecha and Mephiles peer down the hole-- it has no visible bottom]  
MK: Now, how in the hell did people build this place?  
Mp: I haven't the slightest clue.  
[they hop over the hole and go up a ladder]  
[the woman stares down on them from above as they climb, but they don't seem to notice]

 

 **(Tale Two)**  
[cut to the village at ten o' clock]  
[Shade, Red, and Shadow enter the chief's hut]  
[the Chief is in there]  
Chief: Oh, you boys are back! How'd your exploring go?  
Shade: We decided not to go. So we came back.  
Chief: What'd you do for two hours, then?  
Red: .....what?  
Chief: You guys have been gone for two hours. When did you decide to turn back?  
Shadow: Um.. what time is it?  
Chief: I'd say it's just turned ten.  
Shade: WAIT a minute, man. You're saying you haven't seen us for two hours? Is THAT what you're saying?  
Chief: Yeah. That IS what I'm saying. Are you saying otherwise?  
Shadow: But.. we.. I mean... Red, show him! The logs!  
[Red shows the Chief logs 32-35]  
[the Chief becomes wide-eyed as he reads them]  
Chief: "Birchmen?" What on Earth?  
Red: ..?  
Chief: Boys, I can guarantee you I have been in this hut for two straight hours. I have not run into you, or.. or anything, really.  
Shadow: So.. so... so what the heck did WE run into?  
Chief: I.. I'm trying to think. I don't know.  
Shade: ..so what about your notebook? "Forest Off-Limits?"  
Chief: The one you read was not real.  
Shadow: Well, can we see the real one?  
Chief: I.. I suppose so. I guess there's no point in hiding it anymore.  
[the Chief gets the notebook and hands it to Shadow]

Log Entry #39 (Shadow: "Forest Off-Limits," Personal Journal of the Village Chief)  
I miss the Dark Garden. To think, I only left 'cause dad mentioned that damn "chao college." He was.. he was tricking me. He wanted me gone.

Shade: --waitwaitWAIT a second! Hold up. "Chao college?"  
Red: You used to live in the Dark Garden?  
Chief: Yes, and yes. I lived until my father told me that the Chao Transporter took me to college, which I needed at the time.  
Shade: ...  
Chief: ..just keep going, kid.  
Shadow: Alright.

Well.. hopefully he won't find some way to ruin Shade's life. It's obvious he's spoiling the kid. He never did care much for me.

Shade: ..why is my name featured in there?  
Chief: ......keep going, Shadow.

After all, it's best that Shade don't go the way of his older brother.

Shade: HEY. What the crap do you know about my older brother?  
Chief: More than you do. You're doin' good, kid; keep reading.

But damn. I miss the Dark Garden so much. I hear dad's got a home here on this damn planet now. I'm considering going down to visit him. For old time's sake.

[Shade simply looks at the Chief in confusion; the Chief looks back with a slight look of pride]  
[Shade is confused even more at this]  
[Shadow continues]

I'll go to him. I'll ask why he hates me so much. What Shade can do that I can't. ..he's MY father, too. Why can't he love me?

Shade: St-stop the reading, Shadow. ..Chief...  
Chief: Shut up.  
Shade: Wh--  
[the Chief gives Shade a big hug]  
Red: ...ah, yes! Ohh, I get it.. that makes perfect sense now.  
Shadow: Wait, I THINK I'm getting it. Is the Chief... Shade's brother?  
Red: His older brother, Shade 2, yes.  
Chief: That's not my name anymore, Red. I'm John now.  
Red: "John?" Why so plain of a name?  
Chief: My name was SHADE 2. That's an absurd name. An almost.. robotlike name. I wanted to be bland. Simple.  
Shadow: ..who in their right mind names their kid "Shade 2?"  
Red: The better question is, why were you #2 when you're the OLDER brother?  
Shadow: OH WAIT WAIT! I have a theory! Shade is actually Shade 3!  
Chief: No.  
Shadow: And.. and that future Shade isn't really the FUTURE Shade!  
Chief: No.  
Shadow: But wait! He is ACTUALLY yours' and Shade's eldest brother, Shade 1!  
Shade: That's the silliest thing I've ever heard you say.  
Shadow: (sadly) It was just a theory...  
Chief: No, kid, I was called Shade 2 because our dad wanted a specific son. He wanted a grey son.  
Red: Ah, and you're white...  
Chief: Yeah. I didn't come out right, let's just say. So I was "Shade 2." The prototype, if you will.  
Shade: Oh..  
Chief: Don't worry, bro. I don't feel any different towards you. You're still my younger brother. It's our dad that I don't like.  
Shade: ...he.. he was always looking out for me.  
Chief: For you.  
Shade: I don't even remember seeing you much, brother John.  
Chief: That's because I was usually gone. Not much point to there being two Shades in the Dark Garden, after all.  
Shadow: ...hey, Shade?  
Shade: What is it?  
Shadow: I think you should cut your reunion short. We have.. pressing matters at hand.  
Shade: Really? Like what?  
Shadow: Dark.  
[Shade turns pale]  
Shade: ****. I had completely forgotten. John, have you seen him anywhere?  
Chief: No, I haven't seen him since you guys set off. Where did YOU last see him?  
Red: He was--****. He fainted in the other hut.  
Shade: ARGH, you're right. He did! Bro, are you SURE you don't know of ANYTHING that we could have mistaken for another village?  
Red: And for that matter, another "village chief?" Maybe there's another village out here somewhere?  
Chief: ...I can think of only one lead.  
Shade: Anything!  
Chief: Some Halloweens, when I feel brave enough to stand near the edge of the village.........  
Shade: Yes? What?  
Chief: ..I hear........ I hear voices. Multiple.  
Red: Other travelers?  
Chief: ......no. You can just.. tell. That the voices aren't. There's something about them. Something.... sinister.  
Shade: Whereabouts do you stand when you hear this?  
Chief: I'll.. I'll show you.  
[the Chief leads them out of the hut, and to the edge of the village]

[the East edge]  
Chief: Just stand here. For a second.  
[they stand there and listen]  
[they hear woodland critters-- birds, raccoons, twigs rustling..]  
["......bir........an...."]  
["..c....n......es....."]  
[Shade stands, listening, for a second, then moves forward]  
Red: What are you doing?  
Shade: Dark's somewhere out here.  
Shadow: Wait, Shade!  
Shade: I'm not stopping.  
Shadow: I know!  
[Shadow catches up]  
Shadow: Neither am I. Dark's one of us, after all.  
[Shade looks at Shadow and smiles]  
[Red hurries and catches up]  
Red: Hey, I never said I wasn't going.  
Shade: Sweet, we got the whole gang then.  
Chief: You have better than that.  
[John has decided to join them]  
Shade: Bro. Welcome to the gang.  
Chief: Thanks. After all, if you guys hadn't come around, I was gonna go out, anyway. Though for an entirely different purpose.  
Shade: ....we're gonna find Dark. And then we're gonna get out of this damn forest.  
[they keep walking]

Red: Say, Chief?  
Chief: Yeah?  
Red: Haven't you tried just.. leaving the forest? Not on Halloween?  
["..........ch.........m........."]  
Chief: Yeah, as a matter of fact, I have.  
Red: ..I'm going to assume you've had no luck?  
Chief: Friend, I have not had luck one. You see, once you enter these damn woods, you.. you just can't leave.  
Shade: Whoa, wait, I thought you said--  
Chief: You think I WANT to tell travelers that they're stuck? No, I omit that detail in hopes that they'll get lucky. And who knows? Some of them might've.  
Red: What.. what do you think happens to the ones who don't?  
Chief: They die. What kinda stupid question is that?  
Red: No, I meant.. specifically. HOW do they die?  
Chief: Well.. I imagine some of them get lost in the Silent Woods, some of them might drown in the river, some of them might have run into our stranger...  
Shade: The Operator. What do you know of him?  
Chief: "The Operator?" I know we can't be talking about the same creature. Unless you're referring to the Operator symbol that's been drawn around here...  
Red: Operator symbol? Which is?  
Chief: The circle with the X through it?  
Shadow: ****, so THAT'S what that was.  
Chief: Yes. The mark of the slender man, so to speak.  
[Shade cringes; Shadow slows down]  
Shadow: "Slender..."  
"There is a man.. no, not a man. There is.. a...... THING. A thing that looks like a man.  
This thing is some kind of monster man, ten feet tall.. with a suit and tie to match.  
Well, okay, so some stories place him at ten feet. Others place him at seven, or eight... or even fifteen.  
What more, he is awfully slim. You could say he is a very slender man."  
Chief: You two alright?  
Shadow: "Slender man..."  
(man)  
Shade: But.. but he's just an internet legend, dammit! How is he.. actually...?  
Chief: I have no idea. My theory is that it's this damn forest. Sancheria is home to many sinister creatures. Many impossible ones, too. Like that man.  
(man)  
Red: ..what was that?  
["........ol..........ie..."]  
(man)  
Shade: ...pick up the pace, people. We're getting closer to the strange whispering. I hope.  
[they keep walking]

["...bi....hm......."]  
Red: Well, we certainly are getting closer.  
Shadow: Chief, you were saying the ways to die.  
Chief: Oh, yes. Some might run into him, some might venture into the caves below and become lost...  
Shade: I wonder if that Amphis fellow was another traveler.. one who got lost.  
Red: Speaking of, could I take another look at Dark's logs again, please?  
Shade: Sure.  
[Red rereads Entries 28-31]  
Red: o__o  
Shade: Whoa, what's wrong, man? Find something juicy?  
Red: Yeah, I think I might've. I direct your attention to Entry 28.  
"Amfy: The old protagonist, you say? ...who else?  
Dark: Uh.. there was Red.. and the birchman.. and.. the new guy. Shady? Shadoo? Shadoe?"  
Chief: You guys had a birchman with you?  
Red: That's the thing, though. We didn't.  
Shadow: Yeah.. I think we would have noticed a fifth person with us. Especially something like a "birchman."  
Chief: So.. you know what one is?  
Shade: Actually, no, we don't. Do YOU?  
Chief: I haven't the slightest idea. The only possibility that comes to mind is that stranger, but.. I doubt he's one. Is he?  
Red: Don't ask us.  
Shadow: Well, if I recall correctly, that.. that one other chief said "Our friend out there is not a birchman."  
Red: You're right; he DID say that, didn't he?  
Chief: So none of you have any idea what one is?  
Shade: Bro, we don't have clue one.  
Chief: Hm.  
[".....co.....on........s...."]  
Chief: Wait, it's coming from the next acre!  
Shade: Yeah, and?  
Chief: The.. the next acre! The hole surrounded by bodies!  
Shadow: But.. I thought the bodies were trees?  
Chief: What? No! They're.. they're real (bodies)!  
Shade: Walkwalkwalk!  
[they keep walking]

["...bir...an..."]  
[cut to the chao gathered around a hole in the ground]  
[dead bodies surround them]  
Shadow: The voices are coming from down here.  
Chief: Are you sure?  
Shadow: Completely.  
Shade: Sweet. Let's go down, then!  
Red: Hold on a second, Shade.  
Shade: What? Why?  
Red: Unlike the other hole, there is no ladder going into it. That, and it appears to go down quite far. How would we get back up?  
Shade: We'll think of that when we need to. For now, Dark's all I'm worried about.  
Shadow: Now hang on! I'm worried about Dark, too, but.. I mean, we shouldn't just go charging blindly into this!  
Shade: And why not?  
[Shadow points at the dead bodies surrounding them]  
Shade: ...now, what might THEY have to do with anything?  
Shadow: SHADE!  
Shade: Fine! Fine. You're right. But then what do you propose we do?  
Shadow: Well.. I was thinking.. there are lots of trees around here.  
Shade: Gee, thanks for noticing.  
Shadow: No! I mean.. we could cut one down and turn it into some kind of makeshift ladder of sorts.  
Shade: That has got to be the worst idea you've come up with yet, kid.  
[pause]  
Shade: Let's not ever do it. Ever.  
Shadow: Aw, man.  
Red: So what WILL we (do)--****.  
Chief: Whatever you decide, you'd better choose it quick.  
Shade: Shadow, you keep lookout. Quick.  
Shadow: I'm on it.  
[Shadow begins looking around at the trees]  
Chief: We've no ladder. This hole is deep. The trees can't really help us.  
Red: Are we sure? Maybe a branch--  
Chief: Too deep.  
Shade: Maybe there's a way back up from down there?  
Chief: Can we risk it?  
Shade: I'm willing to risk it, yeah.  
Red: Well, I'm not!  
Chief: Hm. I'm not liking the idea of being trapped underground.  
Shadow: Guys, hurry it up; I swear, I just saw that tree move.  
Chief: Though I don't like the idea of being stuck in this forest for the rest of my life, either. I say we go for it.  
Shade: That's two votes so far. Shadow, how about you?  
Shadow: I don't care at this point; let's just get away from this acre, guys!  
Shade: That's three against one, Red. Majority rules.  
Red: Right, now the NEXT problem, then! How do we get down there without risking breaking our legs?  
Shade: Oh, to hell with it; I don't have time for this.  
[Shade jumps into the hole]  
Red: Shade!  
[the three stare down at the hole for a bit]  
Chief: .....our mutual friend. Where is he?  
Shadow: *turns around* ...I don't see him.  
[the chief calls down the hole]  
[no response]  
Chief: Eff it, I'm going in.  
[he jumps in]  
Red: Why are they both so incredulously bold?  
Shadow: No idea. You wanna go in, too? 'Cause I kinda do.  
Red: What? No! NO! I'm NOT going in there!  
Shadow: Would you rather be out here, where the Operator is hiding?  
Red: *********, let's go!  
[Red and Shadow jump into the hole]

Log Entry #40 (Red: Down the Rabbit Hole)  
The fall lasted a few seconds. Suddenly, we hear this massive.. noise. Like a mechanical monster roaring.. like the Titanic, if it were posessed. Perhaps by  
the entity from Paranormal Entity.  
Where in the world...?

Was I just dreaming? I feel so groggy... but the dream was so vivid. Forests and trees and.. Shade's brother.. and...  
...oh. Not again.  
Where am I now, then?

It's.. it's an underground subway station. A well-lit, busy subway station. Chao are all around us.  
Shadow is right next to me, looking around in disbelief. He sees me and remembers the whole.. "We weren't dreaming" bit.  
We look around but see no sign of the Shades.

Our fellow chao are all just sitting or standing, waiting for the next train. They pay no attention to the two newcomers.  
There is a staircase by the wall, to the North. It leads upwards to the surface, probably.  
The train tracks lead East and West.

The West passage has some lights further down, lighting up the tunnel as well as a maintenance door.  
The East passage has no lights at all. Just darkness.  
Our fellow chao are: Three Hero chao, one Dark chao, and four Neutrals.

[Red moves up to the Dark chao]  
Red: Um.. hello there.  
[the Dark chao does not reply; she simply sits, her gaze fixed on the West tunnel]  
Hero: You'd best not bother her.  
[Red turns to face a Hero chao]  
Hero: She doesn't talk. Not since last time.  
Red: What happened last time?  
Hero: Her little brother got on the G-Train.  
Red: Isn't he coming back?  
[some other chao roll their eyes at this]  
Hero: Well.. no.  
Hero2: Oh, don't bother, Jelly. There's no point.  
Hero: Hush. I like strangers.  
Red: Your name is "Jelly," then?  
Jelly: Yeah. Yours?  
Red: I'm Red. My friend over there's Shadow.  
Jelly: Well, Red, I take it you're quite new around here.  
Red: As a matter of fact, I am. And I have a number of questions.  
Jelly: Shoot.  
Red: Have you seen any grey or white Dark chao lately?  
Jelly: Nah, sorry. I've actually been asleep for a while. You happened to wake me up.  
Red: Right. Next, I guess I'll ask the more obvious question. Where is this?  
Jelly: This is the subway. Specifically, station 43.  
Red: Yeah, uh.. "the subway." Could you be a little bit more specific?  
Jelly: Oh! Right, sorry. We're--  
[rumblerumblerumble]  
Jelly: *gasp* Which one is it?  
[the headlights of a train are seen on the tracks]  
Jelly: Yam-Yam, which train is it?  
YamYam: Sounds like the E-Train.  
Jelly: Do we know who's on it?  
YamYam: I.. I can't remember.  
Red: What? What's going on?  
Jelly: The E-Train's coming.  
[a train arrives and stops at the station; it is heading West]  
[two Neutral chao and a Hero chao get off]  
Jelly: Fiddlydum. Please don't tell me it's my turn.  
YamYam: I'm afraid it is.  
Hero3: Yeppers.  
Jelly: ..goodbye, Yam-Yam. Bye, Radizzy.  
[Jelly hugs the other two Heroes, then shakes Red's hand]  
Jelly: It.. it was nice to meet you, Red.  
Red: Same goes for you, Jelly. Where are you going, anyway?  
Jelly: I.. believe this train goes to station 32. Ah! I've really got to get going. Bye!  
[Jelly gets on the train, as do two of the Neutrals who were waiting]  
[the train departs to the West]  
[the new Hero chao nervously stands in place]  
Red: Hey! Hello!  
Hero: ...hi.  
Red: I'm Red. What's your name?  
Hero: I'm.. I'm... Egger.  
[Shadow comes over to Red]  
Shadow: No sign of them anywhere. I asked some of the Neutral chao, and I've learned absolutely nothing. Not even where we are.  
Red: The Hero chao that got on the last train told me we're in station 43, apparently.  
Shadow: Station 43 of WHERE, though?  
Egger: You.. you don't know?  
Shadow: No. We're new around here.  
Egger: N-new? How is that..? How?  
Red: We were in this place called Sancheria. Then we went down a hole and woke up here.  
Egger: Sancheria? What are you talking about? That's..... that's just a myth. You couldn't have been there.  
Shadow: Well, we were. Now where is THIS?  
Egger: It's.. it's the subway.  
Shadow: WHICH subway?  
Egger: What? It's just... the subway!  
Red: ..what's up there?  
Egger: Up where?  
[Red gestures to the staircase leading upward]  
Red: Up THERE.  
Egger: Nothing.  
[Egger walks away]  
Red: ..hey, wait!  
[suddenly, Egger is gone; not a trace is left]  
[Red and Shadow look at each other, then at the staircase]

Log Entry #41 (Shadow: Up)  
I volunteered to go up the stairs, to see what was up there.  
COL  
The stairs go up several steps, then turn to the right.  
ON  
the step that turns.. I.. ugh. What? Oh, right. Right.  
Further up.. the stairs end. I wonder what's up h  
blood everywhere  
filling the corridor  
spilling out of the doors  
flooding down the stairs  
drowning the platform  
reaching the tracks  
killing us all  
washing away the enemy  
washing away the colony  
ere? It's a hallway, a quiet subway corridor.  
Posters advertising various movies, shows, and services are plastered on the walls.  
"Shadow?"  
The hall extends down a length and leads up to big double doors.  
"Hey, Shadow?"  
What's behind these doors?  
IES  
Let's get a little closer, at least.  
"Shadow, what's up there?"  
There's a noticeable taste of blood in the air around here.  
"SHADOW!"  
Oh! Red! Right. I'll go back down now.

[cut back to the bottom of the stairs]  
Red: So? What was up there?  
Shadow: It was a corridor, leading up to some big doors. I bet those doors lead outside.  
Red: Kay, as long as it's safe. Let's check 'em out, then.  
Shadow: Right.  
[they head up the wooden stairs]  
[they reach the corridor and head down to the double doors]  
[Red reaches for the blood-stained doorknobs]  
Dark: AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!  
[Shadow and Red turn around]  
Shadow: That came from downstairs.  
[they run back down]  
[a train is at the station; Dark is on the platform, screaming]  
Dark: NO! I DON'T WANT TO GET ON! YOU CAN'T MAKE ME! NOOO!  
Shadow: Dark?!  
Red: What's wrong?  
Dark: THE TRAIN OH NO THE TRAIN!  
[a dog/horse hybrid-type creature steps off the train]  
Shadow: What the **** is that?

Log Entry #42 (Red: The Creature from the Train)  
Its legs are made of ivory, and its head of stone. It has the tail and ears of a dog, but the nose and mouth of a horse.  
Its body is of the same material as the train. ..metal, that is. The eyes are headlights, shining bright on Dark's scared face.  
It is as big as a.. pony, I suppose. Still massive, compared to us.  
It trots on over to Dark, who screams for us to intercept.

Shadow hurries over to the.. the thing, but it vanishes, only to appear again behind Dark. He screams again as it grabs him with its mouth. ****. ****!  
It moves with such impossible speed; it's on the train by the time we turn around. But wait, Dark! Wait!

It's no use. The train's doors close by the time we even register what just happened.

[the train drives off to the East]  
Red: D-Dark...  
Shadow: What the heck just happened?!  
YamYam: Your friend's gone. He's on the G-Train now.  
Shadow: What was that.. that THING, then?  
Radizzy: It.. I think it was the Security.  
Red: Security? You mean for the train?  
Radz: Yeah.. your friend just showed up here, while I guess he wasn't supposed to be here. So the Security showed up to put him on the right train.  
Red: And the right train.. that's the G-Train?  
YamYam: Y-yeah...  
Red: What's so bad about the G-Train, anyway? Where does it go?  
YamYam: It.. well... Hell, I suppose.  
Shadow: You "suppose!?" What do you MEAN, you "SUPPOSE?!" Do you know or not?!  
YamYam: Well.. um..! No! Not for certain, at least.  
?: It leads to the Katakooms.  
[Shadow, Red, Yam-Yam, and Radizzy turn to look at the female Dark chao, now standing and facing them]  
Red: The "Katakooms," huh?  
Shadow: Who are you?  
?: I'm Spammy, and you were thinking of going down there, weren't you? Down to the Katakooms.  
Red: We really need our friend.  
Spam: Don't worry about it. I'm going with you.  
Red: Are you sure?  
Spam: My brother is down there, too. I love him more than anything. I'm sure.  
Shadow: ..thank you for your help.  
Spam: Don't mention it. C'mon, let's get moving.  
Shadow: Mov.. what, we're walking it?  
Spam: Of course we are.  
Shadow: We can't just take a train?  
Spam: It'll take too long. C'mon. If we want to really do this, it's best we go to station 32 first.  
[Spammy leads them down the West tunnel]  
[they walk past a maintenance door]  
Shadow: Wait, where does that go?  
Spam: It takes you through the maintenance shafts.  
Red: Great, maybe it might be a shortcut?  
Spam: We mustn't enter the shafts. That's suicide.  
[Shadow and Red pass curious glances]  
Red: ..say, Spammy, ma'am?  
Spam: That sounds ridiculous. Don't call me "ma'am."  
Red: Right. Sorry. Um.. can you, perchance, tell us where we are?  
Spam: The subway.  
Red: Yes, of course. But.. WHERE? WHICH subway? What's up there?  
Spam: It's.. just.. the subway.  
Shadow: Then.. what's through those double doors? Above the station?  
Spam: Above station 43? Hang on, let's take a left here.  
[a turn to the left appears in the tunnel; the chao take it]  
Spam: Well, above station 43 is, well... where'd you come from?  
Shadow: We were just in Sancheria, which is.. in Chao World.  
Spam: Then that's what's above it. The Chao World.  
Red: Are you saying this subway travels between planets?  
Spam: To be honest, I have no idea where the subway goes. I'm just saying, if you guys were last in that Chao World, then you found yourself at station 43..  
Red: I see. Educated guess. Makes sense.  
[another left turn appears; the chao take it]  
Shadow: So.. these Katakooms.. trains go there and don't come back?  
Spam: Oh, no, the trains come back. They come back under different names, but they come back. The passengers don't, though.  
[they walk along]  
Shadow: Man, the trains don't come much, do they?  
Spam: Speak for yourself. They come too often for most of us.  
Shadow: I'm just sayin'! It seems like we're able to walk between stations pretty easily.  
Spam: Well, of course. Walking is rather safe.  
Red: Is that so? Then why do chao wait at the stations in the first place?  
Spam: Because of the Security. If we were to get caught walking-- rare, but it DOES happen-- then we'll be sent on the first G-Train to come along.  
Red: Damn. ..what's in the Katakooms, anyway?  
Spam: No one knows. All we know for certain is the name.  
Shadow: Now, what, exactly, IS the Security?  
Spam: The Security? It's the keeper of the tracks. It keeps order. It keeps peace. It keeps us.  
[they arrive at a large station-- this one has two platforms, one on either side of the tracks]  
[ten Neutral chao, seven Hero chao, and eight Darks are at this station]  
Spam: Here we are, boys: station 32.  
[they climb up to a platform]  
Red: Right, and uh.. why were we coming here, again?  
Spam: We're gonna need more than three of us to get to the Katakooms.  
Shadow: Why didn't we just ask some of the people at the other station?  
Spam: We're going back there on the way, aren't we?  
Shadow: Oh. Yeah.  
[they ask around the platform for anyone who wants to join in]  
Spam: Nobody. Alright, then. Guess we're on our own.  
Chief: Wait!  
[John, the village Chief, runs up to them]  
Chief: Ah, Red, Shadow! I thought that was you.  
Red: Hey, Chief. We're going with Miss Spammy, here, to where Dark's being held.  
Spam: Your friend, and my brother.  
Chief: Hm. I get the feeling that's where Shade is, as well.  
Shadow: Shade? What gives you that feeling?  
Chief: He was taken away by some weird creature, so I figured he was being taken to some kind of prison.  
Spam: He was taken by the Security, then. You'd best come with us.  
Chief: I was intending on it.  
[they start walking back West through the tunnels]  
[on the way, Shadow and Red fill the Chief in on what they've been through, and vice versa]  
[the Chief's story is simple: He and Shade woke up in the subway, then the Chief left for a bit, and when he came back, the Security was taking Shade away]  
[after a bit of walking, they wake up again]

Log Entry #43 (Red: St..what?)  
I can only assume that we traveled to another reality, because I.. I feel as if I'd dreamt our adventures in the subway. Ugh, my head is killing me. I think  
I should go to the island on the other side of the pool, and have a lie down... in fact, I will.

WAIT WHAT  
How is this possible? What? Where? But.. I mean... aaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. Keep calm, Red. You're usually the collected one in a state of panic  
and fear, remember? *sigh* Okay. Okay.

We're.. in the Dark Garden. By "we," I mean Shadow, Dark, Shade and myself. Chao's here, too, as well as whatever other chao are supposed to be here. This is  
absurd. Really. All the tombstones are in place, all the trees where they're meant to be, the sky's nice and black, the ground nice and purple... what the  
heck is going on here? Were we just dreaming all of that? Like... ALL of it?

[cut to the Dark Garden; Shade, Dark, Red and Shadow are all there]  
Shadow: Um.... what?  
Dark: lolwut  
Shade: This is getting a little silly. What was the point of that "subway" trip, anyway?  
Red: Perhaps.. perhaps it was a metaphor of sorts?  
Dark: A metaphor? Really? I hate books.  
Red: Yeah.. I mean, perhaps it was intended to just be a transition? Subways are, after all, literal transitions.  
Shade: Eh, I see what you're saying, Red, but... I dunno. For some reason, I don't think whatever forces we're up against are literary scholars.  
Shadow: Pfft, I haven't heard of literary scholars who use every horror trick in the book.  
DJ: SHUT UP  
Shade: ..wait, Chao, are you okay?  
[everyone looks at Chao, who is huddled in the corner, facing away]  
Shadow: Chao?  
[Shadow steps toward him; Shade stops him]  
Shade: If you're so recognizing of horror tricks, you shouldn't fall for this one. Chao's obviously not Chao.  
[Chao yawns, gets up, and turns around, showing he is, in fact, Chao]  
Chao: Oh. Hey, guys! Back so soon?  
[Shade stops stopping Shadow, who then goes up to Chao]  
Shadow: Uh.. yeah, it's a long story, and we're not even aware of a lot of it, but we're back.  
Chao: Well, welcome back. Did you get that chaos drive of yours?  
Shadow: OH YEAH, I DID!  
[Shadow pulls out his newly-acquired green chaos drive]  
Chao: Oh, damn. Looks pretty. Mind if I...?  
Shadow: Oh! Sure! Go ahead.  
[Shadow hands the chaos drive to Chao, who observes it more carefully]  
Chao: Interesting... these are peculiar structures, aren't they?  
[BANGBANG]  
Shade: HOLY ****  
Red: That came from outside!  
[the chao run out of the Dark Garden, out into the Chao Lobby]  
[they run up the stairs and hear another BANG]  
Chao: The Kindergarten!  
[they run into Chao Pre-school And Kindergarten]

Log Entry #44 (Shadow: CPAK)  
We ran up the wooden steps, opened the birch door, and found ourselves exactly where we expected to be-- the lobby for the school. We're not quite sure where  
the bangs came from, but there's five of us, and five doors, right?

Shadow: I checked the Classroom. It was empty, though the toys on the ground were arranged oddly.. as if some kind of struggle of sorts happened in here.  
Dark: I checked the Principal's Office. The Principal was just sitting there, working on some papers.  
Red: I checked the Doctor's Office. Empty, though the chair was lying on the ground, and the pictures had been knocked off the walls.  
Shade: I checked the Fortune Teller's room. The Fortune Teller was busy gazing into her crystal ball; she had no comments.  
Chao: I checked the Black Market. The guy and the fish thing were both there, talking to each other. Boring!

We came back, checked each other's logs, and had a discussion. The transcript of the discussion is included.

Shade: No sign of anything, dude.  
Shadow: Really? But.. but those bangs! I'm SURE they came from around here!  
Chao: Perhaps they came from outside?  
Shadow: Do you wanna CHECK outside, Chao?  
Chao: Well.. no.  
Shadow: Exactly.

A loud thump was then heard coming from inside the Principal's Office.

Shadow: What was that?  
Dark: Probably just the Principal, stapling his papers.  
Red: It was a loud thump!  
Dark: Maybe he's got a super stapler?

I then decided to check for myself about Dark's "super stapler" claims.

The office was dark and musky. Musty. Mirky. It wasn't the best room in the world; let's leave it at that. There was every sign of there having been some  
kind of struggle-- the pictures were no longer on the walls, the books had fallen out of the bookcase, a lamp was knocked over, and even the desk was  
overturned. Then there's the biggest sign of a struggle-- the Principal, lying stone cold dead behind his overturned desk.

Shadow: Dark.  
Dark: wat  
Shadow: I understand you're stupid sometimes, but really.  
Dark: wat.  
Shadow: In your description of this room, the Principal "was just sitting there, working on some papers."  
Dark: ya and  
Shadow: He is clearly NOT ONLY lying, dead, on the floor.. but he is impossible to see upon first entering the room. One would have to walk around the desk.  
Dark: yea but i know but yea but i know but yea but i know but yeah birch i know but yeah but i know but yeah birch i know but yeah but i know but yeah--  
Red: Dark. Why didn't you mention anything about this room in your description?  
Dark: Hey, don't blame it all on me! Shade was lying, too!

We all looked at Shade at this. He simply looked back at Dark. I checked the logs again, and left the Principal's Office. The others followed. I went to what  
Shade claimed to have investigated-- the Fortune Teller's room.

This room was dark and muskustirky, too. Once again, a massive sign of a struggle-- the Fortune Teller's tent..cloth.. thing had collapsed. I moved up to it,  
and checked underneath.

Shadow: Shade.  
Shade: *sigh* What?  
Shadow: You checked this room, right?  
Shade: Yes.  
Shadow: All of it?  
Shade: Of course.  
Shadow: Why did you omit a crucial detail in your report, then?  
Shade: I only omitted, like.. little things.  
Shadow: Like dead bodies?  
Shade: Don't look at me, man! Chao omitted ****, too.

At this point, I was starting to get angry. And.. well, worried. After all, I had no idea what was going on. AT ALL. So I just walked off to the Black Market  
and checked inside.

Shadow: Chao.  
Chao: I know, I know.. the locker's full of dead people.  
Shadow: Including the Doctor. Seriously, why'd you guys all lie?  
Red: For the record, I wasn't lying. The Doctor's Office is empty, and shows signs of a struggle.  
Shadow: Yeah, I believe YOU. But.. why did YOU guys lie?

Suddenly, I realized that Chao was gone. I heard the front door slam, and hurried to it, then opened it.

Outside looked about as normal as always-- a pathway leading to and from the Kindergarten, trees alongside it.. grassy fields otherwise.  
Out of the corner of my eye, though, I saw a chao darting to just out of my field of vision-- around the building, in other words. I gave chase.  
At the back end of the building, I didn't see Chao... but I saw some tall trees.

"Hello?"

Log Entry #45 (Red: Rabbit Hole, Reprise)  
Grogginess. Dream-related delusions. We're now back in the subway.. in station 43. It is definitely station 43; everything matches up, save one important  
detail: people. The station is completely deserted. Shadow looks around in shock, though he looks a lot more pale than I'd expect. We then gather our  
bearings and remember what's going on in this reality. The Chief comes down from the stairs and sees us, then regroups with us. But wait.. where's Spammy?

rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrreeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh  
We hear the high-pitched whine of an oncoming train. The headlights shine, and the train, itself, pulls up to the station.  
It is East-bound.  
The G-Train.  
It pulls up, and its doors open. For us.  
Without thinking, the three of us step on board.  
The doors then close, and the train springs into motion.

Log Entry #46 (Shadow: Bound to a Stream of Consciousness)  
Help me, please. It's dark in here, and yet everything's brighter than my eyes are used to. All the lights are jamming on and twisting my beliefs of...  
but where am.. Katakooms, right. I am standing in the center of the car, not gripping anything, yet I can clearly see out the window as if I were planted  
next to one from the very start of my meaningless existence. The tunnel is so dark, so grim, so pitch black. I can't see out the windows at all. I only know  
that we are moving in one difference toward a new future. Lead.  
WAHEY HAHAHAHAAAA! That's more like it! Happiness and the future is bright. Where are my pants? That's right! I'm a chao; I don't WEAR pants! Not that I ever  
needed them in the first place 'cause things are so SHINY AND HAPPY. Colon Dee, man. Colon Dee. I heard DJay loves Colon Dee more than he loves this script.  
How is that possible? This script is the total best adventure into my own subconscious I ever built out of my own flash drives. If only Ulysses could see me  
now! I always told him things would brighten up and life wouldn't seem as grim. Come to think of it, I think Ulysses is in this teacup with us. Where are  
you, man? Me.  
Ulysses, what's gotten into you? Since when were you a chao? You're so rad... it's as if your colours have drifted into the beyond with my aforementioned  
knowledge of the unknown. Please cheer up, Ulysses. I'm beginning to make sense. You're killing the mood. You're killing me. You're killing us. I really  
should put a stop to that, yessir mhmm a-yup. There's this glass.. I gotta break it 'cause we're in an emergency landing, you know, Ulysses? Lemme break it.  
With my hand. Hey, where's the axe? Stanley Kubrick promised me an axe, but I only have a roque mallet. D'ya know much about roque, Ulysses? One of these  
days, I'll teach you about it. I hear they have plenty of it where you're going. See this mallet? It's great. Please stop cryin', Ulysses. Remember all the  
good times we've had. Remember the cities of gold? Come to think of it, they weren't that gold, were they? I think they were actually made of bi  
truedgufdsvsjdi  
rch. To.  
Birch. Right. Ulysses, man... dude what the.. all the.. tunnels are turning blue. VOICES HELLO HELLO HELLO HELLO HELLO YES HELLO I CAN HEAR YOU SHUT UP.  
Seriously, SHUT UP! You're gonna drive me cds.sxf  
crazy. Ah. The tunnels have paradigmed back to orange. The world has stopped hurtling into madness. It's now mellowing out to the tune of some free-form  
jazz. Hey there, Ness. I want you to come into my hole, Ness. Don't be afraid. That red hat of yours is covering your eyes from the bane of our entire lives.  
You know what I'm talking about? The pinnacle of our creation, Ness! Liar X. Agerate's coming 'round to slap us in the fists with his mighty handcuffs of  
leather and ivorykegkwk9a FIvorRUEASFD  
IVORY  
IVORY  
IVORY  
PLEASE LEAVE  
MISTER IVORY  
I'M TRYING  
TO TEACH  
MY FRIEND  
ULYSSES ABOUT  
THE JOYS  
OF ROQUE.  
Hey, Ness. Would you mind telling Mister Ivory to leave us alone? Thanks plenty.  
See, Ulysses... the key to roque is all in the swing. One side of the mallet's soft and relaxing. The other side is harder than DragonForce. ..that's hard,  
right? Hope you like power metal, Ulysses. Please don't cry. Please. Things are gonna be a whole lot better where I'm sending you. There'll be birchwood and  
businessmen and slenderbrothers and Facebook and child abuse and England and life and it sucks, man, it really sucks. Please get him out of there. Ulysses.  
Please get him out of there. You don't want to go there, do you? I don't want to send you there, but.. but my job, Ulysses. It's my job. I have to. Without  
this job, do you know where we would be right now? Out on the streets, that's where. Out on the flogging STREETS! Is THAT what you want?! Are you telling me  
you want all of us to be, instead of adventuring in New York two serials from now, out on the STREETS?! 'Cause if that's what you want, we'll DO that. And  
the best part? It'll be all your fault. Just like everything is, Ulysses. Just like everything always has been, Ulysses. Just like everything ALWAYS  
i miss you  
WILL  
this roque mallet is so heavy time to crash it down  
BE,  
mister ivory what a surprise please move so i can punish  
ULYSSES!  
SMAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAASH!!!!  
THERE, YOU LYING AND MANIPULATIVE LITTLE SHIFT. Those bruises you have are yours and yours only. I didn't want to get so barbaric. I'm sorry that I got so  
barbaric, Ulysses. I'm sorry I got so barbaric. All I wanted to do was just disable you so you would not be able to cause any more trouble. It's so  
barbaric. It doesn't matter. You made me do it. You struck first. You hit me. It was self-defense, Ulysses. You need to stop doing that to us. To me. It's  
only hurting yourself, you waste of time. You utter idiot. I can't believe I even bothered wasting my time and my mallet on you. But hey! If you scream, I'll  
cut you. Give me one good reason, and I will slit your throat. Stop crying on my bed, you overemotional jerk. Ulysses, get out of here. Never show your face  
around here again. Try using something called Logic. I have it, and you do not. Though I imagine you're so backward, Ulysses, that you have another name  
entirely for Logic. Knowing you, Ulysses, you call it "literal thinking." Get out. No. You know what, Ulysses? If you love her so much, you can have her. After all, I'm out of here. I'm out of here and you can just try living without me. You need me, Ulysses. You've always needed me, and you always will.  
You're useless. Uselysses. You always did like puns, you retard. I don't know where I went wrong in mentoring you, Ulysses, but I imagine it was actually a  
choice YOU made. You were always bad with choices, Ulysses.  
Die.  
Just die.  
Please, Ulysses, just die.  
Please.  
How many times do I have to hit you before you shut up?  
Stop hitting back, or I'll be forced to hold you down.  
Too late.  
Ness, guess who Ulysses just hit.  
Ness, Ulysses just hit Logic.  
You saw him. You know you did.  
I flipped him over, and he'll say he was just grasping for support, but we both know that's not true.  
He hit Logic.  
His favourite mind trick, and he hit her.  
He's on the ground, Ness. He can't fight back. Easy pickings. Help me out here.  
Hey, are you okay, Logic? Don't worry, everything will be alright. Ness is beating Ulysses up for how he lashed out at you.  
The savage.  
..are you kidding me, Logic? Now even YOU doubt me? I can't believe you. None of you know what it means to get to where I am.  
Now this is the story all about how my life got flipped, turned upside-down. It all started with the homeland. We were happy there, you know? But we still  
weren't too happy. So my job took us here. Do you remember what life was like back then, Logic? It was just you and me, plus Jim Rennie and Ness.  
........and HIM.  
Yes, HIM. Ulysses. Always trying to be like Ness, but then going out and defending Jim from Ness. Ulysses never used LOGICAL thinking, did he? Yet these days  
he's always complaining about how *I* never use it. Can you believe it? I'll tell you what else. Ulysses was lying when he said he defended me. He never did  
in all his life. Ulysses hates me. You can see it in his eyes. That's why he's on the floor now. That's why Ulysses is crying and bruised. He never loved me.  
I just want love and support, Logic. Is that so much to ask? Now not even you can provide me with the love I deserve. Go get a job.  
Hey, Ness. Ness, you having fun there? Listen, Ness. Logic's got a job now. She's working the days. I get even less love now. I can't believe it. Hey, Ness.  
Ness, have you heard of Jelly? Jelly's a fantastic girl, Ness. She can love me in ways I've never experienced.  
Logic? You back from work? Listen, I'll be right back. I've got to go to the toilet. You just sit there, but watch out! Don't let Ulysses hit you. The.  
Shadow to the toilet. Things are dark. Can you hear that rumbling? I think we've still got a long way to go. I can hear blood. The blood is whispering sweet  
nothings into my ears. Bliss unappreciated is bliss none.  
Captain Curator is mad now.  
Logic, I'm back. Oh, it was just a trip to the toilet! You know that. How's Ulysses? Not hurt yet, I imagine. He's starting to change, though, and I don't  
like that. I don't like that one bit. Do you hear how he hates me? Do you hear that? C'mon, I KNOW you do! Heh.. of course! How could you NOT hear it? It's  
in the way he says things. Here, let me show you. Just as an example. Don't worry, I won't get mad at him.  
Hey, Ulysses. You hungry? We've got pies. Fresh.. yummy..... meat pies. Lamb. Steak. Kidney. ....oh, you rotting carcass of a person. Get out. GET OUT. NOW.  
Wow, Logic, did you hear that? Did you? "I thought you meant SWEET pies, not MEAT pies." Can you not hear the pure, barely contained contempt?! He hates me.  
I knew it. I can't believe it. I'm not safe in my own safety anymore. Listen, when he comes back, make him wish he never said that. Okay? Okay. Screw it;  
I'll go get him, myself.  
ULYSSES! Get back here, you runt. I didn't say you could leave. Why are you always so mean to me? GET THE **** IN THE CAR. Oh, hey Logic. Hey, Ness. Welcome  
to the car. WHAT was that, Ulysses? ...you lying little.. I did no such thing. YOU hit ME, Ulysses. Then you fell onto the table. Like a cat. A stupid little  
cat. You're so dramatic, Ulysses. OH NO YOU DO NOT. Even if you WERE to, they wouldn't believe you.  
They don't believe you, Ulysses.  
I don't believe you.  
Ness doesn't belive you.  
Logic doesn't believe you.  
You don't even believe yourself, Ulysses.  
Self-defense, Ulysses. Get out. Get out, and don't even think of coming back. We're in the middle of nowhere, Ulysses. You can't escape to some other place.

[cut to Station 44; Red is about to be kicked out of the train by Shadow, but he steps to the side and Shadow simply kicks thin air out]  
Shadow: This'll teach you to disrespect me, Ulysses. We're not coming back for you.  
[the train doors close; the train resumes moving]

Finally, Ulysses is out of my life for good. I've never felt happier, Logic!  
rrrrrrrrrrrAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRGHHHHHHH, NO WAY.  
No matter how many times I kick you out, Ulysses, you always wind up coming crawling right back! Where's your apology THIS time, HUH?! I'll tell you where it  
is; it's up your behind! Ah, flog it.  
Logic, can you believe how utterly SELFISH and ABUSIVE this guy is? Ulysses is just plain DANGEROUS.  
..did you hear that? Excuse me for a second.  
SMAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAASH!!!!!!!!  
That's for disrespecting me, Ulysses. You had better learn your place. YOU do not tell ME to shut up, DO YOU HEAR ME?! SHUT UP.  
OH, THAT'S IT. COME HERE.  
You know, Ulysses, it's not like I'm trying to hurt you on purpose or anything, but the Radio Gnomes are always telling me which thing is which and who is  
not right for this world. They told me last night that I would need to hold you down. So I'm doing that now. DO. YOU. HEAR. ME. YOU. RE. TARD?! Someone has  
got to knock some sense into you. Who better than I? GET BACK HERE. You clearly didn't get the lesson right the first time around.  
And this time, Ulysses, no one is watching.  
I bet you're wondering how I got to be so mad. After all, you may remember that I did not always act like this. The answer is simple.  
It's YOU.  
YOU, Ulysses.  
YOU are the reason behind my anger.  
YOU are the reason behind your own suffering.  
Jelly has nothing to do with this. SHUT YOUR STUPID MOUTH. It's YOU, ALL YOU.  
Now hold on a minute, Ulysses. I'm not through with you yet. Not by a long shot. You think things are confusing now? You think you don't know what's gotten  
into me? Well, things will only get worse.. at least, until I've TAUGHT you a lot more. I need to TEACH you exactly WHAT has gotten into me.  
Would you like a glass of water, Ulysses? NO?! WHAT THE **** IS WRONG WITH YOU?! You're just being confrontational now. Get out.  
Would you like to watch this movie with us, Ulysses? No? ......  
You little piece of dung.  
WHY?!  
WHY ARE YOU ALWAYS DOING THIS, ULYSSES?!  
WHY?! WHY?! WHY?!  
No, don't curl up like some defensive little wimp! Get your little *****y self out and EAT THIS.  
LOGIC, DO SOMETHING. Ulysses is out of control.  
Yes, come help out.  
..Ulysses, stop squirming! Let me show you what your footing is like.  
OH MY  
NESS, HE'S DONE IT AGAIN.  
The savage has gone and hit Logic ag..  
......again?  
But wait.  
He's never done this before.  
What.. but I'm certain he has.  
I'm certain all of this has happened recently. What...  
Ah, it doesn't matter! Ness, teach Ulysses why he should just stop trying!  
Yes, stall for time. I have a LOT of anger in me, you see... and I just need to find the proper  
OUTLET...  
Much like this roque mallet.  
In fact, I'd say this is the PERFECT outlet for my anger.  
Ulysses is lying, sprawled out on the ground. He's crying, the little wuss. Look at all those bruises. Self-inflicted, obviously.  
Oh, though he DOES have a bit of rug burn.. massive rug burn. But that was his own fault in the end.  
Anyway, Ulysses is lying there, not even covering himself, not fighting back. Just enduring Ness' beatings.  
And here I am with a roque mallet.  
Logic, why don't you relax? Relax and watch as I slam this mallet down on Ulysses' retarded little backwards-thinking head.  
All work and no play makes Logic a dull girl, you know.  
Quit your day job. It's not like you deserved it, anyway. Play with me. And Jelly.  
You had better watch this closely. Pay particularly close attention to Ulysses' crying face, grimacing during the moment before the impact.  
Yes, the impact.  
The impact of the hard side of this roque mallet on his little skull.  
You had better watch, Logic.  
Watching is respecting, and you do NOT want to disrespect me.  
Do  
man this mallet is heavy  
as  
its a little hard to hold it above my head  
I  
look at the runts face all tearstained and wide eyed  
say,  
he knows whats about to happen and knows he deserves it  
not  
he knows he deserves every little ounce of the pain hes about to get  
as  
look at ness just pounding away  
I  
look at logic watching me is she scared nah shes not scared no way after all we all hated ulysses he deserves this  
DO!  
SMAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAASH!!!  
*crunch*  
*splrrrrrt*  
Get out, into the cold with you, Ulysses. Ark.  
All is red now. All I can see is red. The blood is sticky yet oh-so sweet. The blood is still talking to me. It is telling me what's in store for us.  
We've got to get out of this flying teapot before it collides with that cat. I want to give my fish and chips to that cat.  
From fear through the eyes of madness, there is no world for tomorrow.  
Good Apollo, there is no world for tomorrow.  
Good Apollo, I'm burning  
YOU HAVE NOW REACHED STATION IV, THANK YOU FOR RIDING AND HAVE A NICE DAY.

  
[cut to a deserted subway station-- Station 4]  
[Dark and Shade are sitting on benches, waiting for the train to arrive]  
[..which it has, and the doors open]

[first, out steps the Village Chief, pale as a ghost, holding his head]  
Shade: Bro?  
Chief: AAAAHHHHHH. ...don't.. call me.. "bro."  
Shade: Wh..what the fetch happened?  
Chief: Shadow... and the... Red.. and..

[second, Red steps off the train, even paler and holding himself tight]  
Shade: R-Red?  
[Red doesn't appear to have heard him]  
Shade: Hey, Red?  
Red: ......h....  
Shade: What? What is it, I can't hear you?  
Red: .....hatred.  
[Red clutches himself even tighter and shuts his eyes]

[finally, carrying what looks very much like a croquet mallet, Shadow leaves the train]  
[Shadow suddenly drops the mallet, mutters something about "Yulessus," then collapses]

  
Log Entry #47 (Shade: Aftermath of.. THAT)  
Well! ...I'm never reading that log entry ever again. Ever. Instead, I grabbed Shadow and Dark led Red (John followed us) up the nearby stairs.

*yawwwwwn* Was.. that a nightmare? Wait, no, right, right. Of course. Well, we're back in Sancheria. It's getting extremely dark around here.. and we're all  
starting to show more than a few signs of tire. ..wait, what'd we go down the hole for in the first place, again? Oh, right, Dark. Yeah, see... I woke up in  
Station 32, then rode the G-Train down to Station 4. Turns out Dark was there, too. I sat down by him, and.. I just knew it'd be best to wait there. For the  
others. Looks like I was right. Though I'm not entirely sure what the heck went down on that train... or, for that matter, what to make of that odd Village  
Chief. Remember him? He was the first to tell us about the birchmen, though it looks like he was lying. Whoever he was, anyway. Honestly, I don't know what  
to make of ANY of this.

Honestly, I'm starting to really want to leave.

Log Entry #48 (Dark: What I Remember)  
In case anybody's wondering, I fainted in some hut, then woke up down in the subway. I met some little baby Dark chao, and he told me to wait. There wasn't  
much else to do; there was just a staircase and the train track in front of me. Eventually, Shade arrived, and HE waited with me! Then, this female Dark  
chao showed up. She had walked all the way here! She hugged the little chao, then the two went up the stairs. Then later on, the other guys showed up.

I gotta admit, tonight's pretty scary so far. Shade sure has the best Halloween ideas.

Log Entry #49 (Red: The G-Train)  
We woke up in the station, then stepped onto the train. We were.. we were just drawn onto it. The train ride started off kinda weird, I guess... it felt like  
we were being watched from all directions, even though it was a pretty empty claustrophobic space. Then suddenly, Shadow starts mouthing off about "Ulysses"  
and "Ness." He.. he called ME "Ulysses," and the Chief "Ness." He asked me about roque a lot. I.. I don't know anything about roque, I swear. Then, the whole  
train turned dastardly blue. I turned around and saw the Security watching us from the car ahead. Then everything turned orange and the Security vanished.  
That was when Shadow started.. going crazy. He started swinging a mallet (which he miraculously attained) around, whether at me or just where he thought I  
was. ..no, that's not entirely accurate. He never swung at me. He was swinging it at this... allegorical Ulysses. Allegorical, metaphorical.. I have no idea  
what in the world Shadow's rant was about, but it sounded almost as if he had planned out a very complex other life.

Then the train stopped at what I assume was Station 44, and he tried to kick me out. Shortly after he missed, he started mentioning two new characters: "Jim  
Rennie," and "Logic." He even spent time facing these almost-detailed figments of his imagination, and talking directly to them. Towards the end, though, he  
just lashed out again and again, and verbally assaulted me nonstop. It was nothing but swings and insults for the rest of the ride. I'll admit, he got me  
with ONE swing, though it wasn't that bad. Then, a few seconds before we arrived at our destination, he slammed the mallet on the ground (presumably for the  
'final kill' of this Ulysses character), and remained frozen in a pose of confusion and possible victory.

I'm scared. What happened to the Katakooms? To Spammy? The other Village Chief? Hell, a LOT of things?!  
..wait a second. I know where we are. This.. this is the acre with the vista in it. The vista.. the aisle of trees!

Log Entry #50 (Shadow: ..Groggy Checklist)  
I'm.. I'm okay. Ugh... that was just nonstop anger for a good while. I'm afraid I may have hit Red. But.. but I need to keep calm. At least for the sake of  
the checklist.  
If we value our lives in any form, we should NOT, under any circumstances,  
\- Follow and/or approach the "other chao." (Nope. .....UNLESS... O___O; NO WAY. It doesn't mean.. just plain ANY other chao..? Does it?)  
\- Go near that aisle of trees. (Haven't gone in yet. :D Though we are there right now.)  
\- Enter any holes in the ground, whether surrounded by bodies, or with a ladder inside. (....yeah. ._.)  
\- Go in any houses. (Not houses, no.)  
\- Go in ANY houses. (Nope!)  
\- Go NEAR any houses. (Nuh-uh.)  
\- Enter any houses. (Bam.)  
\- Go in any houses. (Didn't do it at all. This time.)  
Oh, and we must make sure to keep our eyes on the trees. That sounds fairly easy, considering we'll be in a forest.

"Keep an eye on the trees..." at this point in time, I think I'd like to keep a close eye on EVERYTHING.  
And everyONE.

 

 **(Tale Three)**  
[cut to the house, a hallway on the top floor]  
[Mecha Knuckles and Mephiles are in a dark hallway; two windows are open, letting some light in]  
MK: I think I hear the Doll over here...  
[SLAM-- one window slams shut]  
[SLAM-- the second slams shut]  
Mp: ...d--  
MK: Not a word. Nothing happened. C'mon.  
[they enter the next room-- the attic]  
[the Tails Doll is sitting there, shaking]  
MK: Whoa, Doll, you alright?  
TD: ....yeah. Yes, I am. Just.. zombies. Freaky zombies.  
Mp: This house is crazy, man. We've got to get out of here.  
TD: I agree with that.  
MK: Well, there's nobody here 'cept us chickens, so let's.. go! C'mon.  
TD: There's some kind of hatch here, in the floor.  
[the Doll opens up a floor hatch; the three go in, and open another door to a hallway]  
[this hallway leads up to ANOTHER door]  
Mp: Hallway overkill in this damn house.  
MK: Yeah, but a hallway is better than, say, a morgue or something scary like th  
KRRRRRRRSH  
[the woman appeared in front of the door right before they fell through the floor]  
[they fell down a considerable distance, then awoke in another hallway]  
Mp: ..seriously? I fell AGAIN? This place just LOVES collapsing. And watch, that woman's gonna appear by this door in front of us once we go up to it.  
[she does, then vanishes]  
Mp: Freaking CALLED it.  
[the next room, they find, is the front room of the house; the front door is there, and windows overlooking the forest outside]  
All: YES!  
Mp: I am SO sick of this place.  
MK: This whole place has just been one big mindfreak.  
[they leave the house (at around 8:40), and find the forest to be littered with zombies]  
[fast ones, slow ones, mean ones, shy ones, big ones, small ones, all moving towards them]  
Mp: Enough is ENOUGH! I have HAD it with these mother****in' zombies in this mother****in' house! Everybody, strap in.  
[Mephiles hands the Tails Doll and Mecha a gun]  
Mp: *wields shotgun* I'm about to open some ****in' windows.  
[they slowly step off the front porch of the house and into the forest]  
[they fire left and right, killing off the zombies one by one]  
[in the end, the zombies start to flood in from all directions]  
MK: **** it, man! Run! There's the car!  
[they run to the car]  
FLASH  
[the woman is standing in front of the car]  
[Mephiles, Mecha Knuckles, and the Tails Doll simply stare at her as she stares back]  
[luckily and conveniently, Eggman is standing right behind them]  
Egg: Let's go, boys.

[cut to the void in the middle of absolutely nowhere]  
Egg: I fear we have made a mistake.  
MK: Wh..wait, what just happened?  
Egg: We had no idea of the presence of that house. If we'd have known, we would have sent you a little closer to your destination.  
TD: Wait, no really, what just happened?  
Egg: You were about to be trapped in that house forever.  
MK: And.. you saved us?  
TD: Wait, why couldn't you have just saved us when we first crashed?!  
Egg: We did not then think that you were in danger. We were hoping you would have just kept on walking along the highway.  
TD: What about when we got lost in the house?  
Egg: To keep things simple, we had to wait until you were well out of the house.  
MK: Right. Right. So.. what about the effing chaos drive, then? Will we just have to try again?  
Egg: No, see.. there WAS a chaos drive in that house.  
TD: There was?!  
Egg: Sure was. And we're in luck! Mephiles happened to have grabbed it.  
MK: Well, that's fantastic, then! Mephy, you sly dog, way to go..... wait a minute.  
Egg: Which brings me to the NEXT issue.  
Where is Mephiles?  
TO BE CONTINUED... in Episode 74!

 

 

  
**(Tale Two)**  
[cut to the aisle of trees, eleven o' clock]  
[Shade, Dark, Red, Shadow, and the Village Chief are gathered around]  
Shadow: R-Red? I'm.. sorry about--  
Red: It's fine. Really. Don't.. don't mention it, please.  
Shade: SO, then! The aisle of trees.  
Chief: It's different.  
Shade: It is?  
[the giant grey tree that used to be in the aisle is gone]  
[and at least half the trees have faces etched onto them by now]  
Red: What if.. these are the birchmen?  
Chief: Nonsense. If these were our mystery baddies, I'd have died years ago.  
Shade: What's down there, anyway?  
Chief: .....a house.  
Red: It isn't, by any chance, the huge mansion we spotted past the Silent Woods, is it?  
Chief: As a matter of fact, I believe it is.  
Shadow: Are we gonna check it out?  
Shade: Of course. What's Halloween without a little trick-or-treating?  
[they step up to the aisle of trees]  
Chief: *sigh* Let's do it, then. Either way, this'll be the final leg.  
Red: What?  
Chief: C'mon. Let's go.  
[they step into the aisle, to the East, paranoically looking around at the trees]  
[they begin walking forward]  
Dark: It's like they're watching us...  
Chief: They ARE watching us, Dark. They are.  
[a branch falls and lands directly in front of them]  
[they frantically look around for the tree from which the branch fell]  
Red: Guys, I think.. I think more trees have faces on them now.  
Shade: You're just...... being delusional. Yeah. *looks at trees* .......yeah.  
[they resume walking]  
[after a short walk, Red turns to look behind them]  
Red: ..guys.  
[the others look]  
[the giant grey tree has returned, blocking the path back]  
Shade: Well. No turning back now.  
Chief: C'mon. Let's keep moving. We've still a few acres left.  
[they keep going and going]  
Shadow: This is a very long aisle of trees.  
Red: Well, not many parts of this forest are normal.  
[and going]  
[and going]  
[and going, with the trees around them looking more and more sinister as they go]  
?: ..intruders.  
?2: .....manor.  
?3: ...birch.  
Shade: It's coming from the South.  
Chief: How about we ignore it? We're going to the house, and that's that.  
Shade: Aw, c'mon, Chief. Where's your sense of adventure?  
[Shade moves over to the side of the aisle, only to find the trees have moved closer together, blocking access from out of the aisle]  
Shade: ..uh-oh.  
Shadow: We can't leave now?  
Red: Apparently not. Looks like we're going to the house, like it or not.  
Shade: I guess THIS is why you told us to steer clear of the aisle of trees.  
Chief: It's one of the deciding factors.  
[they resume walking East, and begin to see a humongous house on the horizon]  
[the roof is gothic and foreboding, while the main structure of the building is oddly office-like and bland]  
Shade: What kinda house IS that?  
Chief: The manor, as it's called by travelers... no one's quite sure who built it, when it was built, or even exactly how big it is.  
Red: It's abandoned?  
Chief: Well, now.. I didn't say THAT.  
[they continue walking toward the manor; as they get closer, they start to realize just how big it is]  
[they then begin hearing the voices from before, following them]  
Shade: Look around. Hear that?  
Red: I hear it.  
Dark: It's them, guys... they've found us.  
Red: Who, Dark?  
Shade: Do you even have to ask at this point?  
Red: ..oh, right.  
[they reach the front door to the manor]  
Chief: Here we are.  
Shadow: *sigh* Oh, boy. Let's do this.  
[they open the door and step inside]  
[it SLAMS shut behind them; they hear it lock]  
Shade: Um.. did it just lock from the OUTSIDE?  
Red: What kind of door locks from the outside?  
Shadow: ....a cell door.  
[the others look at him, then at the interior of the current room]

Log Entry #51 (Red: The Manor Interior)  
The manor is a strange place, indeed. It's a labyrinthine ruse if I've ever seen one. There are many rooms. Many, many, many, extending upwards as well as  
downwards, and Eastward as well as.. well, just Eastward. The easiest way to describe what's going on here as we navigate the maze of doors is to describe  
the various room TYPES. You see, each room in this manor (save for a few rarities) fits into one of the following:

Room one, "barren."  
The walls are barren and white. The ground is covered in debris. This place is HUGE, though.. whatever light we have, whether it's a flashlight or from a  
video camera, only shows us what's directly in front of us. We can't even see the other side of the room with our lights; that's how big this room is. From  
the debris, it's clear that something bad happened here. Exactly what happened, we're not sure. There is furniture in this room... furniture covered in  
sheets. All the sheets are dusty.  
hello  
Hello, yes? Who's there? ..ack. I already dislike this place.

Room two, a closet.

Room three, "red."  
The walls here are red. Pictures, paintings, photographs rest upon the walls. Generic ones. Ones of forests and social gatherings and dark city streets.  
Usually, some kind of cabinet or armiture is in this type of room. The room is not that big. The lights are sometimes on, sometimes not. There is always a  
staircase leading either up or down in one of these rooms.

Room four, "hall."  
The walls are bland and white again. The ground is carpeted. The walls are narrow. The lights are off. It's a LOOOONG hallway. And I DO mean LONG. There is  
the occasional door in the hall, and the occasional patch of dried blood on the wall. The hall ALWAYS ends with a door leading to a barren room.

Room five, "kitchen."  
Amazingly, there are a lot of kitchens in this manor, and they're never strategically placed, or.. or even remotely LOGICALLY placed. There's a lot of pans  
and a number of pots, a stove or two and a coupla fridges. The lights are never on in here.

Room six, "window."  
This type of room is simply any room that has a window. Oddly enough, this includes rooms that are NOT at the edge of the building. Some rooms have windows  
looking into the room next to it, even if the next room is just a bathroom or a barren room or whatever. Either way, we always feel like we're being watched  
in these rooms, so we try to avoid them if possible.

Room seven, a bathroom.

Finally, room eight. The basement rooms.  
For the bottom floor of the manor, every room is very similar. They are all barren, filled with various debris and whatnot, dark as hell, dank, spooky, and  
huge. Always huge. We always feel like we're being watched, as well.

Log Entry #52 (DUNGEON: The Manor, Exploration)  
Shade: Okay, guys. Now that we're in, we had may as well take a look around. See if you can find anything good, okay?  
Red: Fine.  
Chief: That's as good an idea as any, I suppose.  
Dark: As long as we don't die.

Window room.  
Red: ****, look at all those windows...  
Shadow: Anybody else kinda really wanna get out of this room?  
Shade: Forget "want to;" I AM getting out of here. There's a door here. C'mon.

Barren room.  
Hello?  
Chief: Yeah? What's up?  
Dark: ..what?  
Chief: I.. oh, it wasn't you? Then which one of you?  
Red: ...  
Shade: ...  
Shadow: ...  
Chief: .....I'm going into this door here now.  
Shade: Hey, don't leave us!  
Chief: Never mind, it was just a closet.  
Shade: Yeah, you do not want to go on your own, bro.  
Chief: This place is just starting to get to me.  
Red: Already?  
Chief: Yeah. Already.  
Red: ..me, too.  
Dark: Hey, a door!

Red room.  
Red: I like this room.  
Shade: Shut up, Red.  
Shadow: Guys, there's a staircase. Should we go down?  
Shade: Pfft, why not? It's not like this place is dangerous or anything.  
Red: Now YOU shut up, Shade.

Window room.  
Dark: Ah, more windows! I like windows.  
...  
Dark: Though not these ones. They're spooky.  
Shade: Oh, they're not that-- RUNRUNRUN

Bathroom.  
Red: AH  
Shadow: CLOSE THE DOOR  
Red: RIGHTRIGHT *SLAM* *lock*

Closet.  
Chief: *SLAM* *lock* Oh, man. Oh.. man.

Kitchen.  
Dark: SHADE, AHHH  
Shade: *SLAM* *lock* Keep quiet, Dark.  
Dark: BUT WHAT THE FU  
Shade: Shhhhhh. Keep. Quiet.  
Dark: But.. but...  
Shade: Shh.  
Dark: ...  
Shade: ...

*THUMP* *rrrroooooooooooohhhhhhh*

Bathroom.  
Shadow: What.. what was that noise?  
Red: It sounded very close.  
Shadow: Do you think it was Shade? Dark?  
Red: I.. I don't know.  
Shadow: Should we.. check?  
Red: In a minute. I.... in a minute.

Closet.  
Chief: ...

Bathroom.  
Shadow: C'mon, Red. We really should check.  
Red: Alright, alright. Quietly, though. You never know who's out there.

Window room.  
Red: ...  
Shadow: See anything?  
Red: Not yet.  
*rattle*  
Red: ffff, the closet..  
...  
Shadow: It stopped.

Closet.  
Red: Hello?  
Shadow: Nobody's in here, Red. Let's get out of here.  
Red: Scaredy-cat.  
Shadow: No, really, nobody's in here.  
Red: ...yeah, you're right.

Kitchen.  
Dark: Shade.. I'm scared.  
Shade: Quiet, I hear voices.  
Dark: :c  
Shade: ..it's Red and Shadow.  
Dark: :o

Window room.  
Shade: Shadow? Red?  
Red: Shade, Dark!  
Dark: *huggle* :D  
Shadow: Did you guys hear that noise?  
Shade: Yeah, it sounded pretty close.  
Red: It didn't come from the closet; nobody's in there.  
Shade: ..wait, where's my brother?  
Red: ....oh, crap. Why do I get the feeling...  
Shadow: ..that we know where he WAS?  
Shade: What? ..o___o no, no, no. No. He wasn't in the closet. He.. he wasn't. I, um.. I saw him.  
Red: What, you saw him running up the stairs or something?  
Shade: .......dammit, he's in this building. He is.  
Red: Relax, Shade. We'll find him. Now, in the kitchen, are there any more doors?  
Dark: One does not simply walk into more doors.  
Shade: Yeah.. there's about two more.  
Red: Then he probably found his way into one without you knowing.  
Shade: Yeah. Yeah. That's it.

Kitchen.

Hall.  
Red: This one's a hallway. A dark hallway, but a hallway, nontheless.  
Shade: Then.. then he's gotta be in here. Gotta be. Plenty of places to hide.  
Red: Right, then. Where will we start?  
Shade: We'll check every door. Every one. He's bound to be in one.

Closet, nothing.  
Barren, nothing.  
*thump*  
Bathroom, nada.  
Red, zilch.  
Barren, nuttin'.  
*thud*  
Window, hello?  
Red, DOWN THE STAIRS HURRY

Basement.  
Dark: It's really dark here. In a bad way. D:  
Shade: Shh. Did he follow us?  
Shadow: I.. I don't see him.  
*raffff*  
Shadow: What the heck was that?  
Red: It came from down here.

Basement hall.  
Red: One light is on in this hall, right up by the door at the end of this long hall. It's awfully ominous.  
*rafff*  
Shade: It's coming from that door.  
Dark: Ohhh, I don't want to go in there, Shade. D: I just don't.  
Shade: We have to.  
Dark: No, we don't, though! We don't! I don't.. I don't even remember what the heck we're running from!  
Shade: The Operator, Dark! We're running from th--  
Dark: No, we're NOT! I didn't see him ANYWHERE in this dark place.  
Red: What do you mean? He was in......  
Shadow: ..the.. window room? Was he?  
Red: I.. I don't recall. I saw SOMETHING in the window, but.. I mean, c'mon, matrixing is the best explanation for that.  
Shade: C'mon, guys. Don't.. don't lie. We saw him. I saw him. I.. I did. I did see him!  
*raff*  
Shadow: Shade, even I'm starting to not want to check out the next room.  
Shade: COME ON, guys! There's a slender man behind us somewhere, and you're.. you're scared of a little NOISE? Come on!  
Red: Shade, don't... *sigh* okay, c'mon, guys. Let's go in there.

Before we enter, let's do our manditory inventory check.  
-two video cameras (Shade, Shadow)  
-one Solid Snake night-vision mask (Red)  
-one simple Masky mask (Dark)  
-one crowbar (Shade)  
-one gravity gun (Shadow)  
-one pulse rifle (Red)  
-one shotgun (Dark)  
Huh. Same as it always was.

  
Basement boiler room.  
Red: This room is.. surprisingly large. My mind is telling me it's an acre large, but my common sense is reminding me that that's impossible. The lights are all on, and there  
are pipes around the edge of the room, all going towards a giant boiler in the middle. The odd noise appears to be coming from the pipes.

Shade: There, see? Nothing in here but us chickens.  
*raf*  
Shadow: Wait, Red? Something about your description seems a little odd.  
Red: Yeah? What's that?  
Shadow: Pipes don't go "raff."

*SMASH*

Shadow: HOLY ****!!!  
Shade: Red. Red. Describe. Please.

Red: It's.. it's black and yellow and teal. It has seven heads, two of which are those of birds. The other five are lion, bear, cow, zombie, and xenomorph. I **** you not.  
It's some kind of.. mist? A mist with legs. Twelve legs. Eleven spider legs and one freaking hoof. This thing came out of the pipes.. and it's gigantic, taking up most of the  
room. Oh, god, the arms--  
*SMASH*  
The lights went out! Ah! Oh, crap!  
Shade: Red, you have a night-vision mask! USE IT! HELP!  
Red: Right!

..where'd it go?  
I don't see it anywhere.  
It's gone.  
That was wTHERE THERE THERE THERE RUN GUYS  
Shade: WHICH WAY?!  
Red: OTHER SIDE OF THE ROOM C'MON  
Shade: DESCRIBE WHAT THE HECK IS HAPPENING, PLEASE.

Red: Its arms! Its arms! Three! Branches! BRANCHES! ..FOUR! Five! One! ....****, too many to count! They're moving in ways that I really don't think branches are supposed to be  
able to move in! fff, wait, it's tiny. Guys, the.. the thing.. is tiny. It's as small as a fly now.  
Shadow: As small as a fly?  
Red: As small as a fly.  
*bzzzzzzzzzzz*  
Dark: I hate flies, Shade. D:  
Shade: I know you do, Dark. I know you do. Red, where is it now?  
Red: It's.. I lost sight of it.  
*bzzzzzzzzZZZZZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz*  
Shadow: Dammit, I can hear it. It sounds like it's getting closer.

Red: Shade. I'm gonna try shooting it as soon as I can see it again, okay?  
Shade: Please do.  
*bzzZZZzzzzzzZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzZZZZZZZ*  
*bzz*  
*BZZZZZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzZZZ*  
*RAFFFFF*  
*budda budda budda budda*  
Shade: SHOOT SHOOT SHOOT  
Red: I AM I AM I AM  
Dark: WHOA WHA *cough cough cough hack* GUYS AH AH  
Shade: That is IT. *grabs plank of wood from ground* Listen up, various monsters of the forest of Sancheria, and listen well, for I have one piece of advice for you.  
*RAFFRAFFRAFFRAFF*  
Shade: STOP HURTING DARK. *chucks plank of wood*  
*RAAAAAFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF*

Red: ..the lights are back on.  
Shadow: Damn, my head hurts now.  
Red: That'll be because the.. the thing is made of some sort of mist, and we ended up breathing it in.  
Shadow: Ugh, dammit, will you stop being so patronizing?  
Red: ..what?  
Shadow: You're always talking down on me. You are STUPID. Stop acting so SMART.  
Red: ..damn, man. ._. Sorry. I wasn't even trying to--  
Shadow: SHUT THE **** UP, ALREADY. I'm sick of your empty apologies! You don't mean it! You don't mean ANY of it! You've been.. abusing us ever since we got here!  
Shade: Whoa, Shadow, calm down. He saved our lives multiple times by now and--  
Shadow: CAN IT, SHRIMPFACE.  
Dark: Shadow, please calm down...  
Shadow: AHHHH MISTER IVORY. There you are. Maybe you can help me teach this little abortion what-for.  
Red/Dark: What did you just call me?  
Shadow: YOU HEARD ME, RUNT. I called you what you should have been.  
Red: Shadow, we're chao. I don't think it's possible for us to hav--  
Shadow: OH FOR ****'S SAKE, ULYSSES! GET OUT! GET OUT RIGHT NOW!  
Red: o____o "Ulysses..."  
Shadow: You're against me. You're ALL against me. Well, let's see how you do WITHOUT me.  
Red: Shadow, WAIT, STOP!

...he left.  
Shade: Wh..what the...?  
Red: "Ulysses..."  
Dark: That's what he called you back on the subway, isn't it? ._. When he was.. wasn't himself.  
Red: It.. it seems this was caused by the monster. He inhaled some of the mist-type substance.. and he appears to have reverted to some kind of primitive hallucinogenic rage.  
Shade: So he's crazy, AND he's mad?  
Red: To put it bluntly. ..crap.  
Shade: What?  
Red: He's crazy, mad, and wandering around this building, alone.  
Shade: Oh, you gotta be kidding me.  
Red: We'll find him. Don't worry.  
Shade: We'll do more than that, Red. We'll find him, then we're getting out of here!

Log Entry #53 (DUNGEON: The Manor, Escape)  
Red: From here on, the whole "room types" thing gets a little fuzzy.

We go out of the room, out of the next hall, up the stairs, then out of THAT room.

We are now in a long, long, long hallway. The lights are on.  
Dark: Hey, who turned on the lights?  
Red: I'd imagine Shadow did it.  
BAH FREAKING RAAAAGH  
Shade: Shadow!  
Red: That came from this door, here.

..it's a playroom. The walls are blue and pink, and wooden toys are scattered on the floor.  
Hello?  
Shade: Nobody's in here, Red.  
Red: ..what?  
Dark: HEY A DOOR

Red: There are pipes along the edge of the room, leading up to a boiler in the mid-- wait a minute.  
Shade: We're.. we're back in the basement.  
Dark: AHHH I am SO sick of this room.  
Red: Wait for us, Dark!

We go out of the room, down the next flight of stairs, then around the corridor.

We are now in a long, long, long hallway. The lights are on.  
Shade: Wait, what? Did we just go down?  
Red: I.. I don't know.  
HURRRRRRRRRRGH ULYSSES  
Red: That came from down the hall!

Hello?

Red: There are pipes along the edge of the room, leading up to a boiler in the mid--  
Shade: This house sucks. A lot.

We go out of the room, up the escalator, through the small hall, and into the parking lot.

The parking lot is huge. Simply huge. Cars are parked all over the place, and we can see the forest at the other end.  
Dark: I wish MY house had a parking lot.  
Shade: What the heck is UP with this place?  
Red: Shh. I heard something.  
...  
heheheh.. i got u nao ulysses  
Red: Is that..?  
Shadow: RRRRRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!  
*SLAM*  
Shade: OH JEEZ SHADOW!  
Red: WHAT THE ****, MAN?! WHAT THE ****?! GUYS, HELP ME! HELP! HELP!  
Dark: NO NO NO SHADOW STOP IT!  
Shadow: DO YOU LIKE THAT, ULYSSES? DO YOU?! THIS IS WHAT YOU DESERVE!  
Red: ACK, GUYS, GUYS, GUYS, HELP!

..........

Red: G-guys?  
..what? I'm.. I'm alone... just me and Shadow.  
Shadow: Forget it, Ulysses. You're alone.  
Red: Where.. where the heck did they go?  
Shadow: Don't you get it, Ulysses? There never were any others. Just you and me.  
Red: But.. but...  
*kick*  
Red: Shadow, you need to relax. Oof! This.. this stuff is all in your head! I'm NOT Ulysses! I'm Red!  
Shadow: Shut up.  
*kick*  
Red: Sh..Shadow...  
What the heck? No longer in the parking lot; we're now in a house. A plain old house. The living room.

...oh, my.  
There are people. Ness, my favourite character from EarthBound, is kicking at me while I'm on the ground. A man, possibly inspired by "Silence of the Lambs," is also kicking at  
me. A nice-looking woman sits, covering her face, at the other end of the room. I am now Ulysses, the ancient sailor. ..I have no idea whatsoever why these characters are  
gathered in the same house, nor why "Captain Curator" is attacking me.  
I must admit, I'm a little afraid. And rather hurt. Ow. I feel rather defenseless.

Back in the parking lot! That was strange. Ah, the others are back now, holding Shadow back.  
Shade: SHADOW, DUDE! *slaps*  
Shadow: Rrraaaaahhhh..... rr.. *cough cough*  
*raaffffff.....*  
Red: Ugh.. run, guys! Out of here!  
The mist has escaped Shadow's body, and is starting to get bigger again. So we run down the parking lot, and exit into the forest.

Hello?

We go out of the room, up the escalator, through the small hall, and into the parking lot.

Shadow: Um.. weren't we just in here?  
Shade: We.. we WERE, yeah.  
Red: Whoa, guys, what the heck is THAT?  
Dark: Looks like the Grim Reaper.  
Shade: For the love of..... I am getting VERY tired of all these monsters and dangers.  
Red: Shade, wait!  
He goes up to the Grim Reaper and shoves him onto the ground.  
Shade: Sorry, Mister Reaper. I'm just sick of all these dangers--  
bloody clown  
giant spider  
sentient planet  
drowning  
eaten alive  
hairy scaly blob  
creatures inside your skin  
abandoned in the woods  
chopped in half  
poisoned  
loss of blood  
alive during autopsy  
burning alive  
suffocation  
birchman  
slender man  
\--that are just suddenly appearing. ....whoa. o_o Anybody else get that?  
Shadow: I feel unreasonably scared.  
Red: Let's hurry up and leave.  
We run down the parking lot, and exit into the forest.

Hello?

We go out of the room, up the escalator, through the small hall, and into the parking lot.

Dark: Okay, that's getting kinda annoying.  
Red: Pfft, yeah, it is.  
Shade: How many times are we gonna (have to keep doing that?) ...hello?  
(Hello?)  
Shadow: Uh-oh. Look.  
At the other end of the parking lot, just outside the exit, is a very tall, very... slender man.  
He is simply standing there.  
Dark: Sh..Shade? Are you gonna push HIM over, too?  
Shade: No. That'd be suicide.  
Red: So, what WILL you do?  
Shade: I'll.. I'll distract him. You guys sneak around.  
Red: G-good luck.  
'Good luck?' That's the best I could come up with for what will probably be my last words to him? Just 'good luck?!'

Shade moves up to the Operator, and yet he does not look at Shade. At least, I don't think he does. His head does not move.  
We quietly go to some nearby cars and start going around them.  
As we go around, I look back and see the Operator is closer to Shade, yet Shade just stands there this time.  
We approach the exit. I look back.  
The Operator is blocking my view of Shade.  
I turn back to see the exit, and scream.  
A faceless chao is standing between us and the forest.  
It is peach-ish.. almost human caucasian-coloured.  
We stand in shock, watching as it watches us.  
It then starts heading toward us. Dark faints.  
However, it passes right by us. Shadow and I watch it as it heads toward the Operator.  
It stops when close. The Operator turns and sees it.  
All of a sudden, a series of images flash into my head, and a million words...  
The Grim Reaper taking a lost soul away,  
A vaccuum cleaner sucking up a dead mouse,  
An old house being approached by a bulldozer,  
And the most prominent: a tree growing in the middle of a road.  
A birch tree.

  
[cut to a dark and wet cave room]  
[Shade, Dark, Red and Shadow suddenly awake]  
Red: ...nyah, that wasn't a dream, you know the drill.  
Dark: Shade, what.. what happened?  
Shade: I.. I don't know.  
Shadow: Guys, maybe we should try and figure out where we are?  
Shade: Good idea.  
Amfy: You guys are underneath Sancheria.  
[Dark turns on the light of a video camera to show Amphis, in the cave]  
Amfy: Hello, Dark.  
Dark: Amfeeny! Hey!  
Red: Ah, Mister Amphis. I hear you helped Dark out earlier tonight.  
Amfy: Yeah, that's right; I did. Now I'm gonna help you guys out one last time.  
Shade: Go right ahead, please.  
Amfy: Dark.  
Dark: ..yes?  
Amfy: You acquired a key about two hours ago. Use it. Kay, I'm out.  
[Amphis leaves the light of the video camera, and is not seen again]  
[Dark pulls out the key he acquired]  
Dark: I guess he means this one.  
Red: I don't see anything for you to use it on.  
Shadow: Maybe it's further ahead? I mean.. there's more to this room, you know.  
[they go further]  
[they begin to hear odd noises]  
[THUMP]  
[rrrroooooooooooohhhhhhh]  
Shade: Gah, I could swear that sounded familiar.  
Red: Just forget about it, Shade. Ignore the noises. We need to focus on getting out of here.  
Shade: You're right. Yeah.  
[they go even further]  
[in this section, they find a locked gate]  
Dark: Ah, leave this to me.  
[...]  
Dark: It doesn't work.  
Shade: What?  
Dark: It doesn't work?  
Red: WHAT?  
Dark: The key, it doesn't work.  
Amfy: Sorry 'bout that.  
[the chao scream, then turn to find Amphis back again]  
Amfy: I forgot to mention.. the key is a weird one. To unlock the gate, you need to insert it into its REAL keyhole.  
Dark: And where is that?  
Amfy: Your eye.  
[Amphis disappears]  
Dark: ..wait, WHICH EYE?!  
[they hear Amphis shout "EITHER ONE" from far away]  
Shadow: Your EYE?!  
Red: Dark, you can't put that key in your eye! That.. that'll blind you! ..in one eye, anyway.  
Dark: But guys.. I've got to. Otherwise we can't leave.  
Shade: Don't listen to Amphis, Dark. We can easily find another way out.  
Dark: No.. we can't. That'd just be wasting time. Guys, I don't know why, but something's telling me we don't want to be here come midnight, and I also think it's getting close.  
Red: ..but, your EYE!  
Dark: I've spent this whole evening getting into trouble, and you guys have always had to rescue me. Well.. this time, we're ALL in trouble. And this time, I'LL rescue us.  
Shade: Dark, NO!  
[SQUISH]  
Dark: ffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu--  
[Dark nearly faints; Shade catches him]  
[Dark's left eye now has the key in it; blood is dripping down his cheek]  
Dark: Did... is it over?  
[the gate is now open]  
Shade: Darko, you saved us. You saved our lives, man. T_T You did it.  
Dark: Good.. let's.... let's leave....  
[they leave; Shade supports Dark]

[they are now in a long, winding, narrow tunnel]  
Dark: Guys.. it's hard to see. Where are we?  
Red: Not there yet.  
[HORRRRRRRRRRRRRUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOGGGGAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!]  
Shadow: WHAT THE **** WAS THAT?!  
Dark: That sounded very familiar...  
[Red turns and sees dozens of glowing eyes behind them]  
Red: Shade. Shadow. Hurry. Like.. REALLY hurry. And do not turn around.  
Shade: ..gotcha.  
[they hurry, and hear stampeding feet coming closer behind them]  
Red: Remember, DON'T TURN AROUND!  
Shadow: WE WON'T!  
[the tunnel turns left; the feet reach the turn mere seconds after the chao]  
Dark: ..I remember this place! Guys! Fork in the road up ahead! Turn left! HARD left!  
Red: You heard the man!  
[they can feel hot air breathing down their backs]  
[the turn in the tunnel could not have come sooner]  
[they spin round and happen to catch a glimpse of their chasers-- purple/green skin]  
Red: I get the feeling they'll turn soon. Keep going!  
[they make a mad dash forward, then find themselves underwater]  
[they blurble and gurp, then swim upwards and get to dry land]  
[they then kneel on the ground, coughing, panting, and gasping]  
Dark: Did we make it? *cough cough*  
Chief: You made it, alright.  
[they look up and see John the village Chief standing by the exit ladder]  
Shade: Bro! Man, am I glad to see you!  
Chief: What the hell happened to his eye? Ah, hold that thought. Meet me in the hut. Let's talk there. It's not safe here.  
[the Chief climbs up the ladder]  
Shadow: Shade.. we.. we actually made it.  
Shade: We did, I know.. I can hardly believe it.  
[after a little rest, they climb the ladder into the forest just as the clock strikes 12]

[at the top of the ladder, when all four chao are out, they look around and find themselves surrounded by white, faceless chao]  
[one, a peach-ish chao, is standing ahead of the rest]  
Dark: The colony...

 

[cut to the acre outside the aisle of trees]  
[Shadow wakes up]  
Shadow: Oh, man... *yawn* what a dream.  
[as does Red]  
Red: Ah, yes, I had a frightening dream.  
[and Dark]  
Dark: My eye seriously hurts.  
[finally Shade, who quickly looks at Dark]  
Shade: ..your eye is fine.  
[pause]  
Shade: WAIT, your eye is FINE! That's great!  
Red: .....you guys dreamt the same dream as me, didn't you? Where Dark stabbed himself in the eye?  
Shadow: With a key, yeah!  
Dark: But my eye is fine...  
Shadow: Wait a minute.  
[Shadow looks around]  
Shadow: This is the acre with the vista of trees in it.  
[they all look around]  
Red: ..at.. morning time.  
[the sun is rising, marking it around.. 8, 9 AM]  
Shade: .....bro!  
[Shade runs South]  
Red: Ah, dammit, Shade! Didn't your dream teach you ANYTHING?  
[the others chase after him]

[they follow him South one acre and West one, where they find a large clearing]  
Shade: BRO!  
[silence; nothing around but trees]  
Dark: ..wasn't there a village here?  
Shadow: Hey, yeah...  
Red: Wait, what's that?  
[in a pile of grass nearby, they catch sight of a faint glimmer of light]  
[Shadow checks it out]  
Shadow: It's.. a chaos drive.  
Red: How many does that put you at? Five?  
Shadow: No, four. My fourth was stolen.. I mean.. I got it in my dream, then it was also stolen in my dream, as well.  
Red: Oh.. oh, yeah.  
Dark: Ugh, I'm so sick of carrying all this. I'm just gonna put it down for a second.  
Red: Carrying what?  
[Dark drops stacks of log entries, guns, clothes, and masks]  
Shade: ..it.... wasn't a dream. I knew it.  
Nite: Of course it was a dream, Shade.  
[they turn and see Levity Nite, the figure in the dark cloak]  
Nite: We would have warned you had we more time beforehand, but the forest of Sancheria is infamous for its powers to knock people out.  
Red: We COULDN'T have been asleep, though. Look at all this stuff! All these entries!  
Nite: The forest is a magical place. Whoever gets lost in here is found dead by a hole nearby. Not even all the bodies are there, either. Some are in a nearby cemetary.  
Shade: So.. so I never met my brother?  
Nite: Not at all. Shade, your brother is currently residing in New York City. Though coincidentally, he HAS been legally renamed "John."  
Dark: What about the birchmen?  
Nite: There used to exist an old tribe of Chao World natives under the name "birchmen." They were known to reside around these areas. They died long ago, however.  
Red: And the Operator? How do you explain HIM? He's been sighted all over the place!  
Nite: Three words: Dark, trees, and matrixing. I guess also paranoia, if you want to extend it to four words.  
Shade: And.. and our logs?  
Nite: Sleepwriting.  
[they look at him in unsurprised disbelief]  
Nite: ..it can happen! Anyway, I have come to get you four. Shadow, I do believe you have your fourth chaos drive, correct?  
Shadow: Yeah. I have it now.  
Nite: Good. You see, Mecha Knuckles and the Tails Doll have returned, though Mephiles is missing. And he had the fifth drive.  
Shadow: What? Do you know where he is?  
Nite: As a matter of fact.. no. But we are searching hard. I simply came to make sure you are alright, and ask if you'll come back to the void with me.  
[the chao look at each other]  
Shadow: ...alright. We'll come.  
Nite: Excellent.  
[Levity Nite snaps his fingers, and the chao disappear along with him]  
[the forest is now silent on November 1st]  
[as the camera begins to fade out, a colony of white, faceless chao arrive and begin looking around the acre]  
[as it fades darker, they hear a rustle and flee the screen]  
[as it becomes black, a tall man appears in the background]

Dark Chao Adventures  
Halloween 2010 Edition  
"Sinister Serials of the Dark"  
Story, setting, maps, by DJay32  
Setting of Tale Three by We Create Stuff  
Most characters by DJay32  
Amphis by Logic(Fentzy)  
The Operator by Marble Hornets crew, based on "slender man" mythos  
Chao, Mecha Knuckles, Tails Doll, Mephiles, Doctor Eggman by Sonic Team  
"Colony of Birchmen" by Mastodon  
THE END

Next time, on DCA: Season Seven, Episode 74

  
"This forest is growing faster than I can tell  
Cell structure eats away at a massive swell  
Seems however I'm a victim of circumstance  
Hunt for ogres and dwarves  
Lion slicer  
Run with death  
Run with death  
White faces coming closer with every step  
Earth envelopes taking breath without happenstance  
Carve my teeth out ripping through the sheep's head curse  
Hunter gatherer  
Ridden from the cave  
Run with death  
Run with death  
Gone away  
My heart's gone away  
Taking everything  
My heart's gone away  
Take it now  
Hunt for ogres and dwarves  
Lion slicer  
Run with death  
Run with death  
Gone away  
My heart's gone away  
Taking everything  
My heart's gone away  
Take it now" -Colony of Birchmen (Mastodon)

YOUR THREE HOURS ARE UP. SIGNAL WHEN THROUGH.


End file.
